The interviews have started, countless others have been scheduled and in Dallas they deliberate again.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has over nine seasons of evidence as to what he has in Jason Garrett as a head coach. But it will take him at least three meetings to decide whether or not to bring him back next season, as the sides get set to gather again on Thursday.
All signs were still pointing to Jones letting Garrett go with the coach’s contract scheduled to expire on Jan. 14, but ESPN’s Ed Werder reported on Thursday that “people inside the building have begun to wonder if Garrett is going to have a role with the 2020 #Cowboys – whether as head coach or in another capacity.”
Still as the Cowboys delay hits 2020, other teams — including two of their biggest rivals — have quickly moved forward in their coaching searches.
None faster than the Redskins, who hired former Panthers coach Ron Rivera on Tuesday. The Giants have an interview set up with former Packers coach Mike McCarthy, who is a front-runner for the job along with Baylor coach Matt Rhule.
The Giants can take the next step in their Rhule pursuit after Baylor’s season ended on Wednesday night with a loss to Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. Garrett was linked to a potential Giants’ opening in late November, but any chance of him landing a head coaching job outside of Dallas gets slimmer with each passing day.
There have been reports of Garrett saying goodbyes to his staff and a false one about the whole coaching staff being canned on Monday.
The thought has been that the delay is being caused by the mutual respect that Jones and Garrett have for each other. That respect, though, may be hurting both sides. Unless it somehow leads to a reunion once thought extremely unlikely.