How Elite is McCarthy's Cowboys Staff? Coordinators Dominate New NFLPA Survey

If a recent NFLPA survey is anything to go by, Mike McCarthy and the Dallas Cowboys seem to have the best set of coordinators in the league.

The NFLPA released the results of a survey earlier this week that revealed the top five offensive, defensive and special teams coordinators, as voted on by the players. Notably, the Cowboys were the only team to place all three of their coordinators in the top five of their respective categories.

Of the three, the highest achiever was John "Bones" Fassel, who players voted as the best special teams coordinator in the league. Fassel, who turns 50 on Wednesday, has been with the Cowboys since 2020, and this season may be his best work yet. Under Fassel's guidance, rookie kicker Brandon Aubrey has made an NFL-record 35 straight field goals to start his career, earning a Pro Bowl nod alongside punter Brian Anger.

In a December article by The Athletic, Fassel revealed what he enjoys most about coaching special teams.

"I loved the players that did it because it was always the freshmen or sophomores in college or the undrafted free agents in the pros,” Fassel said. “You feel like you have an opportunity to help them create a role for themselves to kind of get started playing college football, playing pro football.”

Not to be outdone, offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer and defensive coordinator Dan Quinn both placed third in their respective categories. Schottenheimer, 50, is in his first year as the leader of Dallas' offense, which ranks second in the league in points for with 29.4 per game. Meanwhile, Quinn, now in his third season in Dallas, has transformed the Cowboys' defense from one of the worst in the league when he arrived to one of the best during his tenure.

'I'll Be Ready!' Dan Quinn Leaving Cowboys? Coach Addresses Hiring Rumors

The timing of this survey, just before the regular season comes to a close, is no coincidence. According to NFLPA president J.C. Tretter, the union wanted to highlight some of the game's best coordinators ahead of the next hiring cycle, in which some of these coaches could be candidates.

"We hope it will help these really qualified leaders get the chance to move on in the next cycle and have a chance to become head coaches," Tretter told ESPN.