Cowboys Rumors: Mike Zimmer Eyed for DC Job amid Ron Rivera Buzz After Dan Quinn Exit

The Dallas Cowboys are adding former Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer to their list of replacements for Dan Quinn.

Per NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, Zimmer is interviewing with the Cowboys for their vacant defensive coordinator position on Tuesday.

This will be the second known interview the Cowboys have had about the job. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported on Monday they were going to speak with former Washington Commanders head coach Ron Rivera.

Quinn left the Cowboys after three seasons on Feb. 3 when he was hired as Rivera's replacement in Washington.

Replacing Quinn will be a difficult task for whomever the Cowboys decide to hire. They have ranked in the top 10 in points allowed per game in each of the past three seasons.

There are some big free-agent decisions Dallas will have to make this offseason to keep most of the defense intact. DeMarcus Lawrence, Stephon Gilmore, Jayron Kearse and Jourdan Lewis are set to hit the open market.

The Cowboys still have Micah Parsons and will get back Trevon Diggs after he only played two games this season due to a torn ACL.

Zimmer was most recently in the NFL during the 2021 season when he was with the Vikings. He spent 2022 as an analyst and consultant on Deion Sanders' staff at Jackson State.

The 67-year-old followed Coach Prime to Colorado last season in the same role. He spoke about his desire to remain in coaching during a December appearance on the NFL+ show The Insiders (h/t Brian Schaible of SI.com):

"The biggest thing is I love to teach, I love to coach. When I was a head coach I was trying to teach the players, and get them better, by teaching them about the game of football and not just their position….I think it's something that's just in your blood. My dad was a high school coach for a long, long, time. I love being around the players and I love the challenge of trying to make an organization better and get them where we need to go."

Zimmer spent 13 seasons working as an assistant for the Cowboys from 1994 to 2006. He was their defensive coordinator for the final seven seasons of that run under head coaches Dave Campo (2000 to '02) and Bill Parcells (2003 to '06).

After leaving the Cowboys, Zimmer spent time as a defensive coordinator with the Atlanta Falcons (2007) and Cincinnati Bengals (2008 to '13) before being named Vikings head coach.

Minnesota went 72-56-1 with three playoff appearances in eight seasons under Zimmer.