Mike McCarthy retains Kellen Moore, makes three other hires for Dallas Cowboys’ staff
Mike McCarthy will formally and officially be introduced as the ninth head coach in Dallas Cowboys history at a press conference on Wednesday afternoon.
But McCarthy, who accepted the job to replace the-fired Jason Garrett on Monday, has been busy assembling his coaching staff.
He quickly named Mike Nolan as defensive coordinator almost as soon as he accepted the job.
Now, three more names have come into focus.
Sources said Kellen Moore will stay on as offensive coordinator. John Fassel will be named the special teams coach and Jim Tomsula will coach the defensive line.
According to published reports, Moore had an offer to become the offensive coordinator at the University of Washington, but he has decided to remain with the Cowboys under McCarthy.
This means that Rod Marinelli, who was defensive coordinator and defensive line coach under Garrett, is out. And so is special teams coach Keith O’Quinn.
Moore’s return doesn’t mean he will call plays. McCarthy has done that himself for most of his career and will likely continue to do so.
But Moore’s work with the Cowboys last year as a first-time coordinator and play caller can’t be overlooked.
Moore’s offense led the NFL in total yards and Cowboys had a 4,900-yard passer in Dak Prescott, a 1,300-yard rusher in Ezekiel Elliott and two 1,000-yard receivers in Amari Cooper and Michael Gallup for the first time in franchise history.
Fassel, who was with the Los Angeles Rams from 2012-2019, is regarded as one of the best special teams coaches in the NFL, and his units have consistently ranked in the top 10 in the league.
It will be a huge upgrade from O’Quinn’s units which were among the worst in the NFL in all categories in 2019.
Fassel also served as the interim head coach in Los Angeles when the Rams fired Jeff Fisher in 2016 before hiring Sean McVay the next season.
Incoming defensive line coach, Tomsula, also has head coaching experience. After coaching the San Francisco 49ers’ defensive line from 2007-14, including the club’s NFC championship season in 2012, he was promoted to head coach for the 2015 season. Tomsula has been the Washington Redskins defensive line coach for the past three seasons.
Nolan, who was the New Orleans Saints linebackers coach for the past three seasons, has 17 years of NFL experience as a defensive coordinator, as well as four years as a head coach in San Francisco. Nolan has also been a defensive coordinator with the Baltimore Ravens, New York Jets, Washington Redskins, New York Giants, Denver Broncos, Miami Dolphins and Atlanta Falcons.
This story was originally published January 8, 2020 at 6:00 AM.
