NFL Rumors: Jerry Jones on 'Solo Mission' in Cowboys HC Search After McCarthy Exit

The Dallas Cowboys are in need of a new head coach after the team and Mike McCarthy parted ways this week. And the Cowboys' next move in that coaching search remains a bit of a mystery.

"It sounds like Jerry [Jones] has been on a bit of a solo mission," NFL Network's Jane Slater reported on Tuesday. "He is picking up the phone. He is making calls. It's my understanding that he has not yet called Kellen Moore; he has not yet called Kliff Kingsbury; he has not yet called Steve Sarkisian. ... And then Pete Carroll's another name out there and Jon Gruden. Gruden hasn't gotten a call yet, that's my understanding. Nothing official there."

Slater mentioned two more names in her report. The first was Colorado head coach Deion Sanders, who has been linked to the Cowboys following McCarthy's departure.

"I think the interest from Jerry is absolutely real," she noted. "I guess the question is does Deion want to come [to the Cowboys]? The reason why I ask that is, talking to a lot of people that are close to that program ... is the autonomy that Deion enjoys there, not to mention the staff. He's got a very large staff there, and as one person put to me today, is Jerry going to allow him to bring in all of those [staffers]. McCarthy was asked to reduce his staff, and Jerry is not really high on paying his coaches here."

There is also the matter of Sanders having a buyout in his contract, another hurdle to overcome.

The other name Slater mentioned was former Cowboys tight end Jason Witten, currently a high school coach in Texas. She noted that "it's been my understanding that Jones has talked to Witten in recent weeks, and I do believe that he was part of a plan that Jones initially had when he was going to bring back McCarthy. I think the plan there was to make him an heir apparent of sorts."

With McCarthy out, however, the potential Witten succession plan would appear to be on hold, and it's unclear if Jones would entertain hiring Witten immediately to serve as head coach, given his complete lack of coaching experience at both the college and pro level.

One major downside to dragging out discussions with McCarthy was that the Cowboys lost a window to interview coaches currently employed by NFL teams that are still in the playoffs. Candidates like Detroit's Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn, for example, were free to schedule virtual interviews with teams last week during the bye, a chance Dallas missed.

That won't preclude the Cowboys from interviewing candidates from outside the NFL, or coaches and coordinators from teams whose seasons have already concluded. But the Cowboys are behind the proverbial eight ball when it comes to options like Johnson and Glenn, who both interviewed with multiple teams already.