Mike Zimmer vs. Ron Rivera? Cowboys Should Hire The Coach Who's A 'Shanahan-Stopper'

We know former Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer is a strong candidate for the Dallas Cowboys' open defensive coordinator gig. One ex-Cowboy is willing to back him ... for a reason we find very logical.

Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy has the weight of the world on his shoulders – or at least the weight of owner Jerry Jones’ expectations. With one final year to prove himself worthy of an extension, Dallas is expected to make a deep playoff run.

McCarthy has been dealt an unfortunate set of cards. For all the unit's struggles in the playoffs – most notably in the Wild Card Round loss to the Green Bay Packers – former defensive coordinator Dan Quinn consistently produced strong regular season defenses.

Now, he’s off to face the Cowboys twice each season as head coach of the Washington Commanders. There’s a void to fill in Frisco, and the wrong decision could end "Big Mike's'' tenure.

Jan 9, 2022; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer waves to the crowd after the game against the Chicago Bears at U.S. Bank Stadium / Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

What we know from The Star as of Tuesday: CowboysSI.com is reporting that the Ron Rivera interview has been completed and, as we wrote it live, that the Mike Zimmer interview was "ongoing.''

And what do they think on “NFL Live''? ex-Dallas defensive end Marcus Spears spoke about former Minnesota Vikings head coach Zimmer’s candidacy.

“He’s one of [their options] and a really good possibility,” Spears said, nailing a sound reason. "He has had a tremendous amount of success against Kyle Shanahan-type offenses. That’s one of his calling cards and [modus operandi] which may be very enticing to the Dallas Cowboys.”

Zimmer has been out of football since Minnesota fired him after the 2021 season. However, he boasts an extensive resumé which has seen him spend 13 seasons in Dallas. He began as an assistant coach in 1994 before rising to defensive backs coach for the next five seasons and his final seven as defensive coordinator. During the 1996 season, he won a Super Bowl with the Cowboys.

As Spears noted, the tallest task of Zimmer’s hypothetical Cowboys tenure – this time around – would be stopping the wide-zone principles that are dominating the league. Quinn’s defenses, no matter how potent, consistently fell short against Shanahan and the branches of his tree.

Making a run in the NFC means taking down the San Francisco 49ers and, likely, the Los Angeles Rams or Green Bay Packers in the process.

I didn't bother to make this chart nice, so I'll just lead with how I interpret it:

Further right = Better underlying pass defense results against the Shanahan tree of playcallers since 2017

Further up = Better results against all other offenses (over a much > sample) pic.twitter.com/DLan7zAT3s

— Bureau of Human-Bovine Cultural Affairs (@CowboysStats) February 2, 2024

Daniel Houston notes, above, how effective Zimmer has been against the Shanahan tree. He’s consistently been able to defend against Shanahan-tree passing attacks, but as Quinn learned, strong rushing attacks can end opposing defenses’ seasons by themselves. That, however, may be a personnel issue more than a philosophical one.

Source: Cowboys Finish Rivera Interview, Meeting with Zimmer

Zimmer has positioned himself well for a return to Dallas, and while he hasn’t coached since he departed from Minnesota, he’s bridging a similar gap to McCarthy – two seasons – which is easy to overstate.

It’s hard to say whether the Cowboys’ regular season results will match Quinn’s, but "Zimmer vs. Rivera''? "Zim'' may be the best option to win in January, something Dallas has consistently found elusive.