Cowboys Plan To Meet With Robert Saleh

As they have been known to do, the Cowboys went through with an unusual separation with their head coach. The team moved on from Mike McCarthy a week after Black Monday, thus delaying its entrance onto the coaching carousel.

Dallas is getting started on its candidates, however. The first known name will be Robert Saleh, with NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport reporting the former Jets coach received an interview request. Saleh is already on the Jaguars and Raiders’ interview lists, and he has been closely tied to a potential return to the 49ers as defensive coordinator.

[RELATED: 49ers Expected To Offer Saleh DC Job?]

Saleh has completed his Jaguars meeting; his Raiders summit is set for Thursday. No date for Saleh’s Cowboys meeting has emerged, but the unattached coach should be expected to take the interview. Saleh spent four seasons working for an owner (Woody Johnson) who received criticism for meddling. That would be sufficient prep for Jerry Jones, who operates as the Cowboys’ owner and GM.

The Jets fired Saleh five games into this season; they went 3-9 without him after a 2-3 start. New York’s skid under Jeff Ulbrich made Saleh’s tenure look a bit better. The Broncos keeping Zach Wilson as their No. 3 quarterback all season did as well. Saleh went 7-10 in back-to-back seasons with Wilson as the primary triggerman, and the Jets boasted a No. 4 ranking in total defense in both years after beginning Saleh’s tenure ranking last. The Cowboys have not gone defense for a coaching hire since Wade Phillips in 2007, but they will surely be tied to a few candidates on both sides of the ball during this cycle.

The Cowboys’ 2020 coaching search was quite thin, however. The team only met with McCarthy and Marvin Lewis, satisfying the Rooney Rule — which has since been beefed up. Dallas must meet with two external minorities. It would be rather unusual to see Jones pass on a true search once again, but this franchise has operated differently when it comes to head coaches for several years now.

Deion Sanders has already discussed the job with Jones, and while the Colorado HC reaffirmed his commitment to the Big 12 program, he called the job “intriguing” in doing so. A Sanders extension at Colorado may be in the offing, as the Cowboys present potential leverage, but it does not appear the former Cowboys superstar is truly out of the running yet. More traditional candidates are coming, however, with Saleh being the first.