Last week, NFL insider Adam Schefter of ESPN – along with multiple other outlets – reported that the Dallas Cowboys were hiring Mike Zimmer as the team’s next defensive coordinator. It seemed to be a done deal with Dallas Cowboys team owner Jerry Jones referencing the team’s “new defensive coach” during an appearance at the NFL Awards on Friday night. But in a pretty shocking twist, it sounds like Rex Ryan could still be a candidate for the job.
Rex Ryan, who currently works for ESPN as an analyst, refuted Schefter’s report that the Cowboys were hiring Mike Zimmer, saying “I don’t believe that’s a fact right now.” And during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show on Monday, Adam Schefter explained why Ryan made those comments, suggesting that he may still be in the running for the role, after all.
“I’m gonna be fully transparent,” Schefter said. “Mike Zimmer’s deal is not done yet. So they have reached out to Rex subsequent to that, and they reached out to him about 15 minutes before that segment just to say ‘Hey, any shot of this?’ So that’s where the confusion came – they’re not done with Zimmer yet. They deal’s not done, I should say.”
And it sounds like the Cowboys would be happy to hire Ryan.
“They didn’t like Rex, they loved 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.'”
Obviously, this news led to a lot of reactions on social media.
Zimmer gonna see this and decide, “you know what, they aren’t worth the trouble” and the Cowboys are gonna have to go with Rex. https://t.co/rSqg8DFzQU
— John Williams (@john9williams) February 12, 2024
Rex Ryan has reportedly re-entered the conversation with Jerry Jones and Mike McCarthy.
Ryan said yesterday that he reached out directly to McCarthy to make him aware of his interest in becoming Dallas DC. https://t.co/G8Ct0zsFAV— Ed Werder (@WerderEdESPN) February 12, 2024
The #Cowboys might be the only NFL team currently that exist for purely entertainment, not to win football games https://t.co/MhLRcdE90B
— paul (@PaulSilanoJr) February 12, 2024
Zimmer not a done deal??? https://t.co/kRiWUbYG6s
— Vikeologist™ (@Vikeologist) February 12, 2024
It’s a pretty shocking update. We’ll have to see what ultimately happens.