Stephen A. Smith didn’t waste any time looking for a solution after the Cowboys’ latest meltdown. After Dallas coughed up a two-touchdown fourth-quarter lead in a 33-30 overtime loss to Arizona and fell to 3-5, Smith pointed straight to Rex Ryan as the answer.
On Monday’s First Take, Smith said Jerry Jones should call ESPN and try to bring Ryan in as Dallas’ defensive coordinator. He made the case that Ryan would inject the kind of edge the Cowboys are missing, even floating the idea that Ryan could make an impact with only four days to get ready.
The suggestion landed because the loss was so jarring. Dallas had started Sunday in control on defense, but the game flipped once Arizona went to Gardner Minshew.
From there, the Cardinals piled up three touchdowns in the fourth quarter, erased the Cowboys’ lead and finished the job in overtime. It came less than a week after Dallas had beaten Philadelphia on the road.
Ryan’s name carries obvious appeal. He has a long NFL track record, including two AFC Championship Game appearances as head coach of the New York Jets. But there’s a catch that makes Smith’s idea a lot harder in practice: Ryan has not coached in the NFL since his run with the Buffalo Bills ended in 2016, and it has been even longer since he worked as an NFL defensive coordinator.
That matters if the plan is for him to step in right away. He would have to get familiar with the roster, teach his system and get the defense ready on a tight schedule.
The image of Ryan bringing his trademark intensity is easy to sell. The logistics of making it happen midseason are a different story.
Dallas also isn’t operating without a defensive coordinator. Christian Parker holds that job, while the Cowboys also brought in former NFL head coach Mike Pettine as a senior defensive assistant earlier this season. Parker is still listed as the team’s coordinator.
Smith’s frustration fits the moment, but the collapse in Arizona was bigger than one headline name. The Cowboys couldn’t hold the lead, couldn’t adjust after the quarterback change and couldn’t close the game out in overtime. That leaves plenty of questions about whether the issue is the man in charge, the execution on the field, or both.
For now, Ryan is just a talking-point fix from television. Whether Dallas turns that defeat into a real change is still to be seen.
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