The Dallas Cowboys have hired Philadelphia Eagles secondary coach and passing game coordinator Christian Parker for their defensive coordinator job, the team announced on Friday.
The 34-year-old Parker was hired by the Eagles in February 2024 and followed defensive coordinator Vic Fangio to Philadelphia after their time together with the Denver Broncos.
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Parker began his coaching career in the college ranks working on the defensive side of the ball for Virginia State, Norfolk State, Notre Dame and Texas A&M. He got his start in the NFL with the Green Bay Packers in 2019 as the team’s defensive quality control coach. He moved on to the Broncos as the team’s defensive backs coach following the 2020 season.
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Parker will be replacing Matt Eberflus, who was fired earlier this month after one season in charge of the defense. He will also be the team’s fourth defensive coordinator in four seasons.
The Cowboys gave up an NFL-high 30.1 points per game and finished 30th in yards allowed per game (377). They ranked 30th in turnovers created and 27th in sacks.
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“We got to do a better job of picking who’s going in there,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones told reporters about replacing Eberflus. “We will do a very intense, complete, focused job of replacing Flus and any holes left because of Flus’ job.”
Parker’s influence on the Eagles was clear as the team allowed an NFL-best 174.2 passing yards per game in 2024 and the development of Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean helped improve the secondary. Both players earned first-team All-Pro status and Pro Bowl invites this past season.