The Denver Broncos have been connected to current Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, but if the team hires him, there is one huge condition.
Current Cowboys defensive coordinator and former Falcons head coach Dan Quinn has been a top name for this year’s head coaching vacancies, but if the Denver Broncos want to hire him, there is a huge condition they must follow.
Dan Quinn, by himself, would be an OK hire for the team. Following the pattern of hiring defensive coaches, Broncos Country and the players would be used to what these coaches bring. There’s no doubting that Dan Quinn has had success with the Cowboys this year.
Last year, the Cowboys missed the playoffs, and that was largely due to an awful defense. This year, they’re one of the top teams in the NFL, largely due to their improved defense, which has come under Quinn’s supervision.
Quinn has a solid track record as a coach and coordinator. He oversaw Seattle’s Legion of Boom when they destroyed the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl 48, and led the Atlanta Falcons to a Super Bowl appearance.
Quinn is about as qualified as one can get for a head coaching position, and many head coaches across the NFL see more success in their second stint as a head coach as opposed to their first.
Coaches like Pete Carroll, Bill Belichick, and Andy Reid are all in their second stint as head coaches, and all three have built Hall of Fame resumes.
History would tell us that Dan Quinn would succeed more as the Denver Broncos head coach than he would as the former coach of the Atlanta Falcons, but I think there is one giant condition that the team needs to follow if they want to hire Quinn.
The Denver Broncos MUST acquire a quality, franchise quarterback in the offseason if Dan Quinn is the ultimate hire.
Just look around the league at some of the young quarterbacks in the NFL. Joe Burrow, Patrick Mahomes, Jalen Hurts, Dak Prescott all have the benefit of an offensive-minded head coach.
And, as obvious as it sounds, the best of the best offenses in the NFL are coached by, you guessed it, an offensive-minded head coach.
The risk of hiring Dan Quinn and not acquiring a veteran quarterback like Russell Wilson is the more pressure it puts on him to find the correct offensive coordinator.
If the Broncos end up hiring Dan Quinn and drafting a rookie quarterback, most of the quarterback development would fall on a most likely first-time offensive coordinator.
Dan Quinn ideally wants to run a Kyle Shanahan type offense, which is generally QB friendly, but can Dan Quinn be trusted to hire the right Shanahan coordinator to develop a potential rookie QB?
This is where a Quinn hire makes little sense. You also have to figure if Quinn would even want to take this head coaching position if he has to deal with a young quarterback developing?
Being the defensive coordinator of the Dallas Cowboys seems to be an excellent gig. He’s in a state-of-the-art facility, stations himself comfortably above the field, and surely has one of the highest coordinator checks in the NFL.
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I’m sure Quinn would not openly tell George Paton he wouldn’t like the idea of a rookie quarterback developing under his administration, but I don’t think it would be a good match.