Mike Zimmer will be back on the sidelines sooner rather than later.
The former Vikings head coach had been linked to the Cowboys’ defensive coordinator position following Dan Quinn’s departure. However, after a few rounds of interviews and internal deliberations among Dallas’ front office brass, it seemed the franchise had moved in a different direction. On Thursday, ESPN’s Rex Ryan — who had also been a candidate for the job — revealed that the organization hadn’t yet decided on hiring Zimmer.
Ryan’s remarks came immediately after his ESPN colleague, Adam Schefter, reported that Dallas had agreed a deal with Zimmer to man Mike McCarthy’s defense in 2024.
“I’m not so sure that Zimmer’s got that job right now,” Ryan said. “I can honestly say I don’t believe that’s a fact right now.”
Now, it is. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, both parties found a bit of common ground. Barring some unforeseen tomfoolery, it seems Dallas has mercifully found its man.
The #Cowboys and Mike Zimmer have agreed to terms. Dallas has its new DC. https://t.co/b1WCTo7Njp
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) February 12, 2024
Here’s what you need to know about the confusion.
MORE: Why comparing Patrick Mahomes to Michael Jordan makes sense
Why Mike Zimmer was hired over Rex Ryan as the Cowboys’ defensive coordinator
For a moment on Sunday, it seemed as if Dallas found its man. Then, Ryan muddied the water, revealing a bit of what he knew: Zimmer had not quite secured the Cowboys gig as Schefter believed. Ryan told his fellow NFL Countdown hosts that he had it on good authority that the job was still up for grabs.
His co-hosts were shocked. Had Schefter been proven wrong — and by a fellow colleague, nonetheless? How would that go over at the round table?
Schefter provided a bit of additional context on his and Ryan’s reporting on Monday. During an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show”, Schefter explained that Ryan’s reporting was spot-on.
Per Schefter, Ryan had been in contact with Dallas executives 15 minutes before he was slated to appear on ESPN’s pre-Super Bowl show.
“The Dallas Cowboys loved Rex Ryan..
Mike Zimmer’s deal isn’t done yet and they’ve reached back out to Rex Ryan” @AdamSchefter #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/0iVXpKj7Ja
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) February 12, 2024
“You guys were not the only ones surprised by that, right?” Schefter told McAfee. “I hear that, I’m like ‘What the heck?'”
“I knew, speaking to various people in Las Vegas this week, the Cowboys didn’t like Rex, they loved Rex,” Schefter said. “Jerry Jones, when he got done listening to Rex, was like ‘I was ready to run through a wall with that guy.'”
Schefter added to the mayhem, alerting the masses to some of the inner workings of America’s Team.
“Mike Zimmer’s deal is not done yet,” Schefter said. “So, they’ve reached out to Rex subsequent to that. And they reached out to him about 15 minutes before that segment. … That’s where the confusion came. They’re not done with Zimmer yet.”
In the end, all it took was a little time for the two parties to become one. Zimmer is one of the foremost defensive minds in the game, enjoying a career that has spanned six decades, most of which has been spent on the defensive side of the ball.
He found modest success as a head coach; under Zimmer’s tutelage, the Vikings qualified for the postseason three times in eight years, one of which resulted in an NFC Championship game appearance.
Nevertheless, defense has been his calling card. His first stint at Dallas (1994-2006) saw him successfully implement both the 3-4 and 4-3 defenses, all the while rising up the coaching hierarchy from lowly defensive assistant to lead defensive coordinator.
Zimmer received plaudits for his work with the Bengals defense as well, helping Cincy become one of the more stout defensive units during the 2010s.
After a brief journey into the world of Deion Sanders (Zimmer was a coaching analyst alongside Sanders at Jackson State and Colorado), Zimmer is back. Cowboys fans everywhere will be hoping that he’s better than ever this time around.
