Ahead of Monday’s Wild Card matchup between the Minnesota Vikings and the Los Angeles Rams, some of the pregame talk around the game was put to the side following the Cowboys’ shocking decision to part ways with head coach Mike McCarthy. And interestingly, one former ESPN analyst was named by NFL insider Adam Schefter as a potential darkhorse candidate to land the now-vacant Cowboys coaching job.
On Monday Night Countdown, Schefter issued a report detailing some of the top candidates for the vacant job. The list includes Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore and former Cowboys great Jason Witten, who was once Schefter’s colleague in the lone season Witten served as an analyst on Monday Night Football.
“They can and will conduct a search here to try and find the next head coach of the Dallas Cowboys,” said Schefter. “Obviously it’s new, it’s just beginning. We’ll see what that brings them. A lot of names floating around out there. I think at some point in time they could have some level in the Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore. Potentially even Jason Witten, an all-time franchise great. But this is very early on. Very preliminary. And we’ll see ultimately where Jerry Jones goes with his search. But the Cowboys are in the market for a new head coach.”
Troy Aikman’s comments followed an Adam Schefter report.
Schefter: “I think at some point in time, [the Dallas Cowboys] could have some level of interest in the Eagles’ offensive coordinator, Kellen Moore. Potentially maybe Jason Witten, an all-time franchise great…” #NFL https://t.co/KVQjlIihBq pic.twitter.com/xvddyFVVuf
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) January 13, 2025
If you notice a trend in the names listed by Schefter, it is familiarity with the Cowboys organization. Kellen Moore served as an assistant in the Cowboys organization for five seasons before departing in 2023.
Witten of course played for the Cowboys for 15 seasons before briefly retiring to become a color analyst on Monday Night Football.
Witten’s Monday Night Football tenure wasn’t all that well received, which prompted him to return to the NFL as a player for two seasons before calling it quits for good following the 2020-21 NFL season.
Since his second and final retirement from the NFL, Witten has been coaching at the high school ranks, leading Texas’ Liberty Christian School the school to back-to-back state championships. So unlike his tenure at ESPN, Witten at least has some prior experience as a coach.
On paper, it may seem a bit extreme to bring in someone like Witten with no coaching experience past the high school ranks to be the next head coach of the Cowboys. But earlier this season, Jones did interestingly outline that he believes Witten could have a similar impact at the NFL level as a coach as Dan Campbell has had with the Detroit Lions.
“Yes. Without hesitation. Yes. He has something that you can’t draw up,” Jones told Cowboys beat reporter Jon Machota in November. “He reminds me a lot of our other tight end who is head coach up there in Detroit right now. “Jason is very sophisticated when it comes to understanding football and all the nuances. But more important than anything, he really does understand the physical and the mentality of being physical and that part of it. Without a question, he could become (an NFL coach). He has extraordinary work ethic. He can be a top coach.”