{"id":728001,"date":"2026-02-04T05:02:18","date_gmt":"2026-02-04T05:02:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/728001\/"},"modified":"2026-02-04T05:02:18","modified_gmt":"2026-02-04T05:02:18","slug":"new-faces-on-defense-continuity-on-offense","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/728001\/","title":{"rendered":"New faces on defense, continuity on offense"},"content":{"rendered":"

Update: <\/p>\n

This post will be updated as more Cowboys coaching positions are filled.<\/p>\n

Brian Schottenheimer\u2019s<\/a> first season as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys<\/a> did not go as planned, as the team finished a roller-coaster season with a 7-9-1 record. <\/p>\n

Days before the season opener, Schottenheimer lost his best defensive player when Micah Parsons was traded to the Green Bay Packers.<\/a> The defense could never recover from the shock of the Parsons trade, allowing the most points in franchise history. The poor defensive showing cost coordinator Matt Eberflus his job after one season in the role. <\/p>\n

After casting a wide net to find Eberflus\u2019 replacement, the Cowboys hired first-time coordinator Christian Parker.<\/a> The 34-year-old had coached defensive backs for the Philadelphia Eagles and Denver Broncos. <\/p>\n

The hiring of Parker, not surprisingly, has led to turnover on the Cowboys\u2019 defensive staff. See below how the Cowboys\u2019 coaching staff has changed from the 2025 season.<\/p>\n

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Coordinators20252026OffenseKlayton AdamsKlayton AdamsDefenseMatt EberflusChristian ParkerSpecial teamsNick SorensenNick Sorensen<\/p>\n

While Dallas is going in a new direction on defense, the team will maintain the status quo at its offensive and special teams coordinator gigs. Stephen Jones told reporters at the Senior Bowl that Sorensen would be back to lead the special teams group in 2026.<\/a> After enduring some struggles there, Dallas wants to see improvement from Sorensen.<\/p>\n

Defense20252026Defensive lineAaron WhitecottonMarcus DixonOutside linebackers coachN\/AChidera Uzo-DiribeLinebackersDave BorgonziCornerbacksDavid Overstreet IIRyan SmithPass game coordinator\/safetiesAndre CurtisDerrick AnsleyAssistant defensive lineBryan BingSecondary\/nickelsDarian ThompsonDefensive assistantJ.J. ClarkDefensive assistant\/quality controlTanzel Smart<\/p>\n

Parker is bringing in his own defensive staff for the 2026 campaign. He has already gotten out to a quick start,<\/a> hiring four defensive assistants. Uzo-Diribe makes the jump to Dallas from the collegiate ranks. Ansley will serve as the team\u2019s defensive pass game coordinator\/defensive backs coach.<\/p>\n

Offense20252026QuarterbacksSteve ShimkoSteve ShimkoRunning backsDerrick FosterDerrick FosterWide receiversJunior AdamsJunior AdamsTight endsLunda WellsOffensive lineConor RileyConor RileyPass game specialistKen DorseyKen DorseyAssistant wide receiversTiquan UnderwoodTiquan UnderwoodAssistant offensive line\/quality controlRamon ChinyoungGame management coordinatorRyan FederRyan FederQB fellowshipDele HardingDele Harding<\/p>\n

Dallas\u2019 offensive staff hasn\u2019t undergone too many changes this offseason. Tight ends coach Lunda Wells is a name to monitor, as he was scheduled to interview for Pittsburgh\u2019s offensive coordinator gig<\/a> under Mike McCarthy. Meanwhile, Ramon Chinyoung has officially joined McCarthy\u2019s staff as running backs coach.<\/a> He was Dallas\u2019 assistant offensive line\/quality control coach in 2025.<\/p>\n

Special teams20252026Assistant special teams coordinatorCarlos PolkCarlos Polk<\/p>\n

Polk is still on Dallas\u2019 staff as assistant special teams coordinator.<\/p>\n

Find more Cowboys coverage from The Dallas Morning News here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Update: This post will be updated as more Cowboys coaching positions are filled. Brian Schottenheimer\u2019s first season as…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":728002,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2066],"tags":[2886,96665,230,229,257,2461,7,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-728001","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-dallas-cowboys","8":"tag-brian-schottenheimer","9":"tag-christian-parker","10":"tag-cowboys","11":"tag-dallas","12":"tag-dallas-cowboys","13":"tag-dallascowboys","14":"tag-football","15":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116010611239529805","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/728001","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=728001"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/728001\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/728002"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=728001"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=728001"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=728001"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}