Former Cowboys Deion Sanders and Jason Witten are among the names proposed as the club’s next coach

Deion Sanders and Jason Witten are two of Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones’ former players — and favorites — and both have been floated as potential replacements for coach Mike McCarthy.

Jones and McCarthy agreed Monday to part ways after five seasons together. McCarthy had an expiring contract and finished 7-10, ending a three-year streak of trips to the playoffs with a 12-5 record. Dallas was 1-3 in those three playoff series.

There was no update from the club on the coaching search Tuesday, a day after Jones announced it would begin following McCarthy’s decision to leave.

Jones signed Sanders to a free agent contract in 1995, a few months after the Cowboys lost to Sanders and the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. The 49ers won the Super Bowl.

The Cowboys won their third Super Bowl in four years in that first season under Sanders, whose five seasons in Dallas matched his longest tenure with any team. Atlanta, which drafted Sanders fifth overall in 1989, also had the Pro Football Hall of Fame cornerback for five years.

Sanders just finished his second season as coach at Colorado, and he and Jones spoke about Dallas’ opener on Monday.

Witten was the best tight end in franchise history and is the club’s leader in games, starts, consecutive starts, catches and receiving yards.

The 11-time Pro Bowler was interested in joining the coaching staff when McCarthy replaced Jason Garrett in 2020, but instead became the head coach at a private school in the Dallas area. Witten’s team just won a state championship.

Witten could fit the mold of Detroit coach Dan Campbell, another former Dallas tight end who led the Lions to the NFC’s first playoff berth a season after losing to the Niners in the title game of the NFC. The Lions host Washington on Saturday night in a divisional game.

A move by Witten would be highly unusual since his only coaching experience was in high school. Campbell had plenty of NFL coaching experience when the Lions hired him in 2021.

Philadelphia offensive coordinator Kellen Moore has a close relationship with Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott, who is entering the first year of a four-year, $240 million extension. This is the first contract with an average annual value of $60 million in NFL history.

Moore served as Prescott’s backup in his final season as a player in 2017 and immediately became his quarterbacks coach in 2018. A year later, Moore took over as offensive coordinator and served as play-caller of Prescott for four seasons, including the first three under McCarthy. .

Dallas was among the league’s best offensive teams during Moore’s time as playmaker, but the offense faltered at times late as playoff success once again eluded a franchise that didn’t made it past the divisional round since the 1995 season.

The Cowboys and Moore parted ways after the 2022 season, and he spent one season with the Los Angeles Chargers before joining the Eagles. With Moore calling plays, Saquon Barkley became the ninth player to rush for at least 2,000 yards in a season.

Philadelphia won the NFC East and beat Green Bay in the wild-card round. The Eagles host the Los Angeles Rams in a divisional game on Sunday.

Detroit defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn could be another viable candidate. The former Texas A&M standout spent two seasons with the Cowboys late in his 15-year career.

Formal interviews with Moore and Glenn would have to wait until after their seasons.

Jones’ next coach will be his ninth. The first four were first-time head coaches in the NFL, starting with Jimmy Johnson when Jones purchased the team in 1989. The former University of Miami coach won two consecutive Super Bowls before a breakup acrimonious with Jones, his college teammate at Arkansas.

Three of Jones’ last four hires had NFL head coaching experience, including Super Bowl winners Bill Parcells and McCarthy. The exception was former Dallas quarterback Jason Garrett, the longest-tenured coach under Jones for more than nine seasons.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl