As the Cowboys search for the next coach, keep an eye on Jason Witten

Surprisingly, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones didn’t overshadow the Packers-Eagles playoff game by announcing that Mike McCarthy would not return as head coach. Not surprisingly, Jones overshadowed Monday night’s Vikings-Rams playoff game by masterminding the leak of the news that Jones had spoken to Colorado coach Deion Sanders.

This disclosure is of mutual benefit to Sanders and the Cowboys. It helps him possibly get more money from Colorado, it legitimizes him as a potential NFL coach in the future (even though he insisted during the 2023 season that he would never coach in the NFL), and that gives the Cowboys the job. hide the ying yang.

Jerry will surely be looking for even more sizzle, with more strategic leaks from big names. On Sunday, for example, a story could emerge during the Rams-Eagles playoff game on NBC and Peacock that Jones spoke to North Carolina coach Bill Belichick.

There is another name to watch. Jason Witten, former Cowboys tight end. Some familiar with the dynamics of the organization believe he will at some point (not necessarily now) become the Cowboys’ head coach. And if McCarthy had agreed to a short-term deal, Witten may have joined the team to gain NFL coaching experience before moving on to the top job.

With McCarthy gone, Jerry Jones may be taking a cue from Jim Irsay’s playbook. After foolishly firing Frank Reich at the start of the 2022 season, Irsay even more foolishly hired former Colts center Jeff Saturday, who had limited coaching experience exclusively at the high school level.

Witten has been the head coach at Liberty Christian School in Argyle, Texas, for four years. He has no other coaching experience. In the end, this may not matter to Jones.

Another possibility would be that Jones hires someone like Pete Carroll, who would take the job with the understanding that he will groom Witten to take over, at the right time.

Regardless of how this plays out, and it may not be the right time for Witten to make the jump to the NFL level, at least watch for his name to be mentioned, if only to make the possible future arrival of Witten in Dallas less surprising than that of Saturday was in Indianapolis.