Getty The Cowboys have had a quiet offseason.
The Dallas Cowboys are bringing back a familiar face as the team is hiring former linebacker Joe Bowden to the coaching staff, per On3 Sports’ Matt Zenitz. Most recently, Bowden was working under another former Cowboys player Eddie George as the Tennessee State linebackers coach.
“The Dallas Cowboys are expected to hire Tennessee State linebackers coach Joe Bowden, a source tells @on3sports,” Zenitz tweeted on February 23. “Bowden, a former Cowboys and Titans linebacker, previously worked in the NFL as a linebackers coach with the 49ers and Rams.”
Bowden played his final NFL season with the Cowboys in 2000 notching 23 tackles and two tackles for loss in 2000. The linebacker spent his first five seasons with the Oilers before the team moved to Houston where Bowden played an additional three years. Hitchens’ best statistical season came with the Titans in 1998 when the defender snagged 103 tackles, two fumble recoveries, 1.5 sacks, one forced fumble, one interception and a touchdown.
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Bowden Spent 9 Seasons as an NFL Linebacker for the Oilers, Titans and Cowboys
What a hit against one of the hardest running backs to ever get down. Jerome Bettis.
Prior to his nine-year NFL career, Bowden was a standout college player at Oklahoma. A little more than a year before he would get drafted, Bowden discussed his team-first mindset with The Oklahoman’s Bob Hersom.
“It’s the guys up front that allow me to make the plays,” Bowden told The Oklahoman during a October 4, 1990 feature. “The defense is set up for the linebackers to make the plays.
“…I guess I say that because it’s the way I was raised. In my heart I believe I’m a good player, but I was raised to think that my team comes first. That’s why I don’t want to say that I’m a dominant player or anything like that. I don’t believe in that.”
McCarthy Sounded off on the ‘Unsuual’ Rumors About His Future
Bowden is the second announced addition to the Cowboys coaching staff so far this offseason. The ex-NFL linebacker joins new wide receivers coach Robert Prince, who replaced former assistant Adam Henry. Despite initially dropping cryptic hints about the future of the Cowboys coaching staff, owner Jerry Jones later went public with his support for Mike McCarthy continuing as head coach for 2022.
During a February 15 interview on The Rich Eisen Show, McCarthy admitted that he would prefer not to have his job security in the news. McCarthy noted that he is not concerned about his status but conceded that things are a little different as Cowboys coach.
“Jerry’s the owner, he’s the GM and he’s always taking a 360-degree view of everything,” McCarthy explained. “And I think it’s like anything in life, we have a lot of one-on-one conversations. We’ve discussed all these things. I never once felt that I was not going to be the head coach moving forward.
“And frankly, I’ve been at this long enough, that’s all I’m focused on, and I think the players, the coaches, football operations is really my main hold. I’m the leader of this football team, and I’m about winning. And that’s all I’ve ever focused on and that’s all I ever will focus on.
“Are these narratives unusual? Absolutely, I’ve never dealt with anything like this. Do I wish I didn’t have to come on here and answer questions about it? Yeah, no doubt about it. I wish we were talking about something else, but it is part of our landscape, and I just think keeping things real and keeping things focused because, at the end of the day, it’s about the people that you’re in charge of. It’s about the people you coach and, most importantly, it’s about our locker room.”