The stars shine bright in Dallas.

More often than not, it’s also how the Dallas Cowboys conduct business — the franchise searches far and wide for the biggest names in the NFL. America’s Team would have it no other way … especially in a coaching search.

After their parting of ways with Mike McCarthy, it comes as no surprise that everyone is trying to keep up with what Jerry Jones’ team will do. There’s the potential big splash (see: Colorado head coach Deion Sanders). There’s the homegrown talent, like Kellen Moore. There’s the outside-the-box pick, like Jason Witten. There’s the more conventional route, like Robert Saleh and Leslie Frazier.

The list will almost certainly grow over time as the team looks to steal headlines and, eventually, win games with their next hire. Anything goes deep in the heart of Texas, which makes for an exciting coaching search to follow.

Here’s the latest on the Cowboys’ search for a new head coach.

COWBOYS COACHING CANDIDATES: Deion Sanders among Mike McCarthy replacement options

Cowboys head coach search rumors, news, updates

This section will be updated as interviews occur and relevant news about potential candidates becomes available.

Kellen Moore a top candidate for Cowboys’ HC

On Thursday, the Cowboys officially requested to interview Moore, the current Eagles’ offensive coordinator. He formerly held the same title in Dallas before the sides mutually agreed to part ways following the 2022 season. In the four seasons that Moore coached the offense, it finished in the top-10 three times.

Moore, undrafted out of Boise State, played for the Cowboys from 2015 to 2017 before transitioning into the team’s quarterbacks coach in 2018. He was then given the OC responsibilities from 2019 to 2022 and was a holdover from Jason Garrett’s staff to McCarthy’s.

Rapoport said Moore is considered a “top candidate” for the job and that his familiarity with the organization makes this potential partnership one to keep an eye on.

MORE: Troy Aikman rips Cowboys for parting with Mike McCarthy: ‘Not a real plan’

Deion Sanders would ‘almost certainly’ accept Cowboys’ job if offered

Sanders was initially believed to be a long shot, but the noise is getting too loud to ignore. Jones is reportedly enamored with the idea, according to Werder, meaning the rumors will continue to swirl until the search is over. NFL Network’s Jane Slater reported Thursday that Sanders approached Colorado’s athletic director, Rick George, on Tuesday about additional money for NIL and his staff, but was met with resistance. Sanders, who played for the Cowboys, previously said he had no interest in coaching in the NFL. That seems to have changed in recent weeks.

Robert Saleh to interview this week

Saleh, the former Jets coach, is set to interview for the Cowboys’ job this week. The former 49ers’ defensive coordinator seems likely to land a job for 2025, whether that is as a coordinator or head coach.

Cowboys request interview with Seahawks’ Leslie Frazier

Frazier is also slated to interview for the Dallas gig. He comes with plenty of experience, serving previously as the head coach in Minnesota and more recently as the Buffalo defensive coordinator before spending last season in Seattle.

Jason Witten was seen as potential heir apparent to Mike McCarthy

Witten was reportedly floated as a potential heir apparent in negotiations with McCarthy, who opted to pursue other opportunities, according to Slater. Jones thinks very highly of Witten, but it’s unclear whether he will be a head coaching candidate. The former Cowboys’ tight end doesn’t have any NFL or college coaching experience, but has been the head coach at Liberty Christian in Argyle, Texas, since 2021.

Cowboys coaching candidates

Here is a look at who the Cowboys have interest in or requested to interview thus far:

• Deion Sanders, Colorado head coach
• Robert Saleh, ex-Jets coach
• Leslie Frazier, Seahawks assistant head coach
• Kellen Moore, Eagles offensive coordinator

Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders “would almost certainly accept” an offer from Jerry Jones to become the next head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, according to veteran NFL reporter Ed Werder.

And not only is Coach Prime apparently interested, but people around the coach are encouraging him to take the position and that Jones is also “enamored” of the idea, Werder added.

Sanders appeared to emerge as a candidate to become the Cowboys’ next head coach after it was revealed he and Jones spoke about the position in a recent phone call.

That call became public shortly after the Cowboys and former head coach Mike McCarthy agreed to part ways, and Fox Sports reported that there was mutual interest between Prime and America’s Team.

For his part, Sanders did confirm the phone call took place and that he was intrigued by the conversation he had with Jones and at the idea of leading the Cowboys franchise.

“To hear from Jerry Jones is truly delightful and it’s intriguing,” Sanders said to ESPN.

“I love Jerry and I believe in Jerry. After you hang up and process it and think about it, it’s intriguing. But I love Boulder and everything there is about our team, the coaches, our student body, and the community.”

Amid all the speculation and rumors, there’s still nothing set in place between the two.

Despite all the talk, the Cowboys and Sanders have not scheduled an official in-person interview about the position, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

But “the conversations will continue,” Schefter noted on ESPN.

“Deion said to me he’s intrigued with the job, and clearly, Jerry Jones is intrigued, too. Those two men know each other so well. They don’t have to have a lot of conversations,” Schefter said.

While everyone is busy intrigued by the idea, the Cowboys have been setting up formal interviews with other candidates not named Deion Sanders to replace McCarthy.

Still, the prospect of Prime returning to Dallas is too interesting to not entertain.

Especially considering a cryptic message Schefter says he received from a high-level NFL exec.

“I can’t help but think of, about 16, 17 months ago, I had an NFL general manager call me up and said, ‘I want you to write this down right now: the next head coach of the Dallas Cowboys is going to be Deion Sanders. Take it to the bank because of the respect that exists between Deion Sanders and Jerry Jones and vice versa,’” Schefter said.

Sanders has stated repeatedly that he intends to stay with the Colorado program and help build it back into a national contender.

So far, that project has gone well after he improved from his 4-8 debut in 2023 to a 9-4 effort in 2024 that saw the Buffaloes briefly in the Big 12 title picture late in the season.

Key to that effort was the play of eventual Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter, the two-way player at defensive back and wide receiver.

Sanders’ own sons were also prominent in that improvement: his son, Shedeur, quarterbacked the team to one of the nation’s most productive offenses.

And another son, defensive back Shilo, was also an important piece of that puzzle.

But now all three of those players are getting ready to leave Colorado and enter the NFL Draft, where they’ll all be highly-coveted prospects for teams to choose from.

And while Sanders said that he intends to stay at Colorado, he did also leave a hint that there’s one exception he would take into consideration.

“The only way I would consider, is to coach my sons,” he told Good Morning America. “Not son. Sons.”

The apparent interest between Sanders and Jones could suggest there’s another exception the coach would consider, but until anything happens, it’s all just talk.

(Werder)

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A curious thing happened last year as worried Dallas voters passed a charter amendment pushing for the hiring of more police officers. The city’s violent crime rate dropped.

And not by just a little. According to year-end data briefed before a Dallas City Council committee this week, overall violent crime in 2024 was down 8.26% from 2023. Murders decreased 26.2%.

That’s an astounding improvement from the year before, when killings were up nearly 15%.So why do so many people in Dallas still feel unsafe?

Dallas voters in November approved Proposition U requiring, in part, that the city spend half of its excess revenue maintaining a police force of at least 4,000 — an increase of around 900 officers. Dallas Hero, the nonprofit that backed the proposition, cited violent crime. Police and city officials understandably balked, pointing to fiscal constraints and challenges recruiting officers.

Public perceptions about crime can’t be brushed aside. The city must do a better job of making all residents feel safe, even those who are victims of low-level crimes. For example, scarce traffic enforcement leaves Dallasites across the city feeling vulnerable.

But our police department has done a remarkable job with violent crime, which has steadily dropped in Dallas in the last three years since police implemented their Violent Crime Reduction Plan. The data-driven approach targets high-crime areas called hot spots, identifying apartment complexes and other places repeatedly at the center of crime. The plan’s “focused deterrence” element identifies particular criminal suspects or potential criminals and offers them pathways to better lives.

This grid approach has paid off again in 2024, according to data top brass delivered to the City Council’s Public Safety Committee this week. In addition to murders, aggravated assaults decreased 7.7% and personal robberies were down 5%. The only significant increase in violent crime was in business robberies, which rose 4%.

Dallas police are particularly proud of their focused deterrence efforts, which include other agencies and nonprofits. Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot told us that members of his staff are “part of the team that knocks on doors and engages with these individuals and their families and pairs them with services that reduce the likelihood of them committing violent crimes.” That’s the kind of grassroots crime-fighting measure that makes a difference.

Also during the crime briefing, city staff members indicated that, based on their review of recent budget allocations, they are “confident that these investments align with the priorities of City of Dallas residents as expressed in the November election,” according to a memo.

Dallas Hero apparently disagrees; the next day it sent a letter to the city demanding compliance with Proposition U.

With those battle lines drawn, we’ll watch for a fight to play out at City Hall in coming weeks and months. Dallas must address the concerns of residents all over the city, not just in high-crime areas. The main challenge of our next police chief will be maintaining the decline in violent crime while improving police visibility across the city.

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