Dan Quinn's name was a hot one on the head-coaching market. He dumped a bucket of ice water over his own head Thursday.
Quinn has informed prospective teams he is staying with the Dallas Cowboys as their defensive coordinator, ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷ÍøNetwork's Tom Pelissero reported.
With this message delivery, Quinn has removed himself from consideration for four head coach openings across the ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íø(Dolphins, Giants, Jaguars, Vikings). The former Atlanta Falcons head coach had received a half-dozen requests to interview for head-coaching jobs after spending just one season as a coordinator after he was fired from his head coaching position with Atlanta toward the end of the 2020 season; Chicago and Denver filled their vacancies Thursday with Matt Eberflus and Nathaniel Hackett, respectively.
Under Quinn's direction, the Cowboys' defense enjoyed a massive turnaround in 2021, transforming from an 11-man sieve in 2020 to an opportunistic unit that finished second in the ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøin interception rate and seventh in scoring defense. The reversal of fortunes was headlined by stellar play from second-year corner Trevon Diggs, who led the ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøin interceptions with 11, and a fantastic rookie season for linebacker Micah Parsons, who earned both Pro Bowl and first-team All-Pro selections in his first ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøcampaign.
The backwards hat-wearing Quinn became the face of Dallas' massive improvement, which put the Cowboy in a favorable position entering the postseason before an upset loss on Super Wild Card Weekend ended their season earlier than most anyone expected. Still, Quinn remained a hot target in the coaching carousel after proving he can guide a team toward defensive success, leading some to believe he'd soon be in charge of an ¹ú²úÍâÁ÷Íøteam once again.
That time will not come in 2022. Quinn will instead return to the Cowboys to pursue a Super Bowl they thought was very achievable in 2021 before their stunning defeat.
