FRISCO, Texas — With the decision to part ways with Matt Eberflus comes another major coaching search for the Dallas Cowboys, this time to identify their fourth defensive coordinator in as many seasons, and that's an unfortunate streak they'd like to avoid continuing when doing their annual review in the offseason to follow the 2026 campaign.
Little to nothing has worked in their favor defensively following the departure of Dan Quinn, a fact owner and general manager Jerry Jones himself admitted, and the inaugural season of the Brian Schottenheimer era was bludgeoned by a franchise-worst level of defensive production that torpedoed the efforts of a prolific offense — one that produced a 4,000-yard passer, a 1,000-yard running back and two 1,000-yard wide receivers.
The writing was on the wall for Eberflus, and potentially some position coaches as well, but as the Cowboys sort through the latter to determine who'll stay and who'll go, the task of interviewing the next defensive coordinator, who will also have a say in the matter, has officially gotten underway; and only three days after Eberflus exited the building.
Having no time to waste, and choosing to waste no time, the Cowboys are either scheduled to interview or have conducted interviews with the candidates on this tracker.
Expect more names to be involved as the days roll along, so be sure to bookmark this.
[Note: This will be updated frequently.]
Interview Denied by Current Team: Jeff Ulbrich (Atlanta Falcons)
Candidate: Jim Leonhard
Current Position: Broncos' defensive pass game coordinator
Status: Interview
Despite being only 43 years old, Leonhard has already emerged as one of the most promising young defensive minds in the NFL, and it likely stretches back to his time playing defensive back in the league from 2005 through 2014, for six different teams and in a myriad of schemes. He began his post-retirement career as a defensive backs coach in the collegiate ranks for Wisconsin before ascending to interim head coach in 2022, landing with the Denver Broncos in 2024 as both their defensive backs coach and pass game coordinator, also being named assistant head coach to Sean Payton in 2025.
Schottenheimer, and every one of the Broncos' opponents this season, know all too well exactly how rigid and unforgiving a Leonhard-led defense can be. It's a unit that was essentially a brick wall at all three levels this season, the stifling of Dallas' prolific offense in Week 8 serving as Leonhard's first de facto interview with the Cowboys, so to speak, and he's a former mentee of Rex Ryan.
Candidate: Daronte Jones
Current Position: Vikings defensive pass game coordinator
Status: Interview
Only a bit older than Leonhard is Jones, but the latter has a lot more coaching experience in his carry-on luggage. A former cornerback for Morgan State, Jones began his coaching career at the turn of the century and has an expansive collegiate resume that includes cornerbacks coach for UCLA, defensive backs coach at Wisconsin (he and Leonhard have that in common), and defensive coordinator at LSU.
Jones even had a stint in the CFL as defensive backs coach for the Montreal Alouettes before beginning his NFL stretch with the Miami Dolphins and Cincinnati Bengals — joining the Minnesota Vikings in the 2020, his 2025 season having allowed him to learn from and pick the brain of none other than Brian Flores, and that can only be seen as a good thing.
Candidate: Ephraim Banda
Current Position: Browns safeties coach
Status: Interview
Landing directly in-between the ages of Leonhard and Jones is Banda, having just recently turned 44 in November (you should be sensing a theme by now, folks). Also keeping with the others on this list is the fact Banda is a former cornerback who later began his coaching career at the collegiate level — a graduate assistant at Incarnate Word and then Texas in the early 2010s — then elevating to the role of defensive quality control coach at Mississippi State, followed by a much more notable stint as co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach at Miami (Florida) heading into the pandemic year.
Banda parlayed that, and the role as defensive coordinator for Utah State, into a shot with Jim Schwartz and the Cleveland Browns in 2023, where he's remained since. That is a defense that has been one of the most feared in the league, the presence of Myles Garrett not exactly hurting their cause, of course, but while Schwartz finds himself a hot commodity in this coaching cycle, as does Banda; a branch of the Schwartz coaching tree with a lot of potential.
