The Dallas Cowboys fired Matt Eberflus this week as defensive coordinator after a shambolic 2025 season.
Attention now turns to who will replace him.
There are several candidates whose names have popped up, with Jim Schwartz and Brian Flores among them. But as we saw with Brian Schottenheimer's offensive staff, sometimes going for unproven coaches in the NFL can work.
But for ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, he believes that Dallas needs an experienced coordinator.
"Dallas feels like it has a playoff-caliber offense (second in yards per game this season) and needs someone to tie the defense together," Fowler wrote. "However, people on Dallas' staff felt the defensive problems were "not all [Eberflus'] fault." Roster reinforcements will be necessary. Something to keep in mind: Dallas rarely hires a first-time defensive coordinator. Experience is required."
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Cowboys can't waste Prescott's prime
There's no doubting Dak Prescott has been playing at an elite level in 2025, leading the offense to be one of the most prolific in football.
But when you score, on average, 27 points per game, that is usually enough to win more than your fair share of football games...except when the defense allows 30+ points in nine games as Eberflus' defense did.
So that has to stop, and the incoming coordinator has to fix this defense and have them ready to roll come Week 1.
It won't be a quick fix, but just be average, not horrific. That's the goal.
Because with this offense and a league-average defense, Dallas is easily a playoff team in 2026.
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