Report: Cowboys DC Dan Quinn 'Potential Replacement' for Broncos HC Vic Fangio
In as soon as 13 days, the Denver Broncos likely will begin submitting interview requests for its next head coach, and the search to succeed Vic Fangio could lead the organization to the Lone Star State.
Pro Football Network insider Tony Pauline recently reported that Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn is a "potential replacement" for Fangio, citing Quinn's past ties to Broncos general manager George Paton.
“Dan Quinn — who worked with George Paton years ago in Miami, so they have a relationship working together — is the name that right now is being bandied about as a potential replacement for Fangio if Fangio is in fact fired at the end of the season,” Pauline said on Thursday, December 30.
Quinn is in his first season with the Cowboys following his 2020 dismissal as the Atlanta Falcons' head man, with whom he compiled a 46-44 career coaching record, including a trip to Super Bowl LI. The 51-year-old has done a masterful job transforming the once-laughable Dallas defense, which leads the NFL in takeaways and ranks seventh in points allowed through 15 games.
Quinn — who's saved his best work for Cowboys first-round linebacker, a frontrunner for Defensive Player of the Year — is one of the hottest candidates on the 2022 head-coaching market. It was reported earlier this week the Jacksonville Jaguars want to speak with Quinn, but he's chosen to delay any interviews until after the upcoming playoffs.
The Broncos might not wait that long, and, more importantly, there remains the matter of the Fangio, whose firing hinges on whether the COVID-decimated club squeaks into the postseason, Pauline reported.
“I think first we have to say that if Denver somehow gets into, squeaks into the playoffs — they are not going to fire Fangio," said Pauline. "They are 7-8 right now and have the Chargers and Chiefs left on their schedule, so it is an uphill battle. First thing I’m told is there’s no animus. There’s no dislike between George Paton, the relatively new general manager, and Fangio. But Fangio is a coach that Paton inherited. So if they don’t make the playoffs, they go 7-10, they’re going to move on.”
It's possible, if Denver hires Quinn, that Paton would also make a push to acquire veteran quarterback Russell Wilson, whom Quinn knows from their Seahawks days, and who, disgruntled, reportedly named the Broncos as a preferred trade destination.
It's just as possible, however, that Paton balks at bringing aboard a third-straight defensive-minded head coach after the franchise failed with Fangio and his predecessor, Vance Joseph.
Regardless, the initial domino should fall on Black Monday.
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