Mike Vrabel was fired by the Tennessee Titans after back-to-back losing seasons. The coach’s firing surprised many, as Vrabel is highly regarded in league circles.
The coach was considered a shoo-in to replace Bill Belichick in New England, but the Patriots went with Jerod Mayo instead. This means that one of the top coaches is still on the market. Enter the Dallas Cowboys.
Another playoff failure could result in a change
The Dallas Cowboys fell to the Green Bay Packers at home on Sunday. Not only did the Cowboys lose, they were utterly dominated by the 7-seed Packers. The Packers went into Dallas and came out with a 48-32 win. A Dallas team that had Super Bowl aspirations once again fails to advance in the postseason.
Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry jones is one of the most recognizable owners in sports. Jones is outspoken and absolutely hates losing. As Tim Kelly of Cowboys Country pointed out, it feels like McCarthy is “on borrowed time” in Dallas after a third consecutive embarrassing playoff exit. Could Jones actually make a change?
Well, if Jones does decide to move on, he would likely want an established coach. Kelly mentions that Vrabel would make sense in Dallas, and also floats the idea of Vrabel bringing in former Falcons coach Arthur Smith to be his offensive coordinator. Vrabel and Smith worked together in Tennessee for 3 seasons.
Would Mike Vrabel work in Dallas?
As Kelly points out in his article, Vrabel may not want to work with an owner like Jones. Vrabel’s ouster in Nashville was reportedly owed to a power struggle, which may make him a poor fit in Dallas. However, if Jones is stricly concerned with winning, concessions may be made for a coach like Vrabel. Kelly said the following regarding the fit:
Vrabel, of course, has a defensive background, and would likely salivate at the chance to coach Micah Parsons, among others on that side of the ball. Arthur Smith might have been overmatched as a coach for the Atlanta Falcons, but he was the offensive coordinator under Vrabel when the Titans reached the AFC Championship Game in 2019. Perhaps they could reunite in Dallas, and Vrabel likely wouldn’t have to worry about losing his offensive coordinator to a coaching job anytime soon.
It will certaily be interesting to see where Vrabel ends up and what Jones decides to do in Dallas.