Dave Campo could be returning to the Dallas Cowboys soon.
The Dallas Cowboys have received permission from the Jacksonville Jaguars to interview the team’s former head coach for an assistant spot.
Back Where It All Started
In 1989, Dave Campo was hired by the Dallas Cowboys to be their defensive backs coach. He had followed Jimmy Johnson up from the University of Miami.
Dave Campo was promoted from defensive backs coach to defensive coordinator after Butch Davis left the Dallas Cowboys to become the head coach at the University of Miami.
He filled that role for 5 years before being promoted to head coach after Chan Gailey left the team.
In his 2 years as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, he was widely praised for his leadership skills. However, he was also widely criticized for his decision making as a head coach. Dave Campo was fired by the Dallas Cowboys as owner Jerry Jones made the decision to pursue coaching legend Bill Parcells.
Vacancy
The Dallas Cowboys have a vacant spot on the coaching staff with the departure of several assistant coaches, many of whom left to join the Miami Dolphins a few days ago.
Best to Move On
Right now, Dave Campo is the assistant head coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars. If he were to join the Dallas Cowboys, it would be as the defensive backs coach.
In case you didn’t know, that is a demotion. That means that the Jacksonville Jaguars could deny Dave Campo permission to leave if they wanted to.
However, that doesn’t appear to be what head coach Jack Del Rio (a former linebacker for the Dallas Cowboys, by the way) wants.
Jack Del Rio recently hired Donnie Henderson (former defensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions and New York Jets). He hasn’t been given a title just yet, but his specialty is with defensive backs. It appears as if Jack Del Rio hired a replacement for Dave Campo before he actually left.
Owners’ Choice
Jerry Jones has stated that he would allow head coach Wade Phillips to choose assistant coaches to fill the void on his staff. However, the potential hiring of Dave Campo appears to be a move that Jerry Jones is choosing.
Wade Phillips has been looking for a defensive backs coach who has experience with the 3-4 defense. Dave Campo does not fit that bill since he’s been coaching under the 4-3 defense.
Last week, Wade Phillips hired Todd Grantham to coach the defensive line. Todd Grantham had previous served as the defensive coordinator for the Cleveland Browns, and he does have experience with the 3-4 defense.
Jerry Jones also sought permission from the Atlanta Falcons to interview Emmitt Thomas. He was denied, and the Atlanta Falcons promoted Emmitt Thomas to assistant head coach (he had previously served as interim head coach when Bobby Petrino ran away).
Closing Thoughts
Dave Campo is an experienced coach is pretty good when he’s just allowed to teach defensive players. Good move for the Dallas Cowboys.