Dan Quinn on 6-Man Broncos Wish List; Can Cowboys Coach Fix Russell Wilson?

Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn is among the six names being mentioned for the Denver Broncos head coach vacancy.

FRISCO - The Denver Broncos fired Nathaniel Hackett on Monday and immediately - and understandably - attention turned to names of possible successors.

And Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn is among the six names being mentioned.

Quinn has been the Cowboys coordinator for the last two seasons and has overseen a dramatic turnaround in that unit in his time at The Star. His Cowboys lead the NFL in takeaways for the second straight season and are also among the league's sack leaders - all adding up to playoff-bound Dallas' 11-4 record.

He's both respected and loved by players and unlike Hackett, does have experience as an NFL head coach, having guided the Falcons to the Super Bowl in 2016.

There is speculation that Quinn, with his Seahawks roots (he was a Super Bowl coordinator in Seattle) might take Dallas staffer Brian Schottenheimer (another Seahawks ex who once worked with Denver QB Russell Wilson) with him. Defensive line coach Aden Durde should also be considered a candidate there. And we'll bet that Quinn would love to be joined by top assistant Joe Whitt Jr. - though Dallas would likely fight to retain him.

But wait - where does this speculation come from?

Mostly from the fact that Quinn was a finalist for the Denver job a year ago before the Broncos chose first-time coach Hackett. Since then, the Broncos position has shriveled up in terms of attractiveness (see here), and Quinn will likely have other options - including of course his continued position in Dallas, where the Jones family "sweetened'' his situation a year ago in helping him decide to stay.

The present list of six, per CBS Sports' Josina Anderson, is: Dan Quinn, Darrell Bevell, Eric Bienemy, Sean Payton, Demeco Ryans and Shane Steichen.

Odds to be next Denver Broncos head coach, via @SportsBettingAG:

Sean Payton: 4-1
Dan Quinn: 5-1
Jim Caldwell: 6-1
Shane Steichen: 7-1
DeMeco Ryans: 8-1
Eric Bieniemy: 9-1
Frank Reich: 9-1
Kellen Moore: 10-1

— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) December 26, 2022

Oh, and the sportsbooks see Quinn as a top guy as well.

All in all, the speculation might be a bit premature ... but that doesn't mean it'll end up being inaccurate. The Quinn connection with the Broncos was, and again will be, a real one.

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