"We can't endure the wrong for another 30 years" - Legendary Cowboys WR sends stern message to Jerry Jones to hire Deion Sanders
The Dallas Cowboys entered the head coach hunt slightly later than the six other franchises also looking for a new leader, as they were still pondering whether they should retain Mike McCarthy after the team finished 7-10 and missed the playoffs. The two sides eventually parted ways but the delay in making the decision led to the Cowboys losing out on Mike Vrabel, who joined the New England Patriots.
Since then, two more top head coach candidates, Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn, have picked their landing spots, leaving Dallas with only a handful of options to choose from. While Dallas continues its search for a new head coach, franchise icon Michael Irvin warned owner Jerry Jones that he has to nail the appointment and hire a leader who could end the team's three-decade wait for a Super Bowl win. In an impassioned plea on Fox Sports' Speak, he said:
"Jerry, you have tough decisions to make. With this decision, you must understand that it has been 30 long years. That drought is the longest drought of any NFC team, that means 1/3 of Cowboys nation has never lived the glory of a championship story. We need a coach. We need a coach that can bring us togetherness, discipline and a collective will on the field and give us great hope to Cowboys nation off the field."
The Cowboys great then endorsed Hall of Famer Deion Sanders for the job and implored Jones to convince the Colorado Buffaloes head coach to leave college football behind and join the team:
"The only way you can spell hope for us is - D-E-I-O-N! D-E-I-O-N! D-E-I-O-N! Deion Sanders will bring us that hope! Jerry, make the right decision, because we can't endure the wrong for another 30 damn years."
Deion Sanders to the Cowboys? Franchise reportedly keen on hiring Hall of Famer
After Mike McCarthy's exit, Deion Sanders became the heavy favorite to take over as the Cowboys' new coach. Owner Jerry Jones reached out to the 57-year-old to gauge his interest in taking the job. The two-time Super Bowl champion confirmed via a statement that the franchise contacted him but suggested that he wasn't keen on leaving the Buffaloes:
“To hear from Jerry Jones is truly delightful, and it’s intriguing. I love Jerry and believe in Jerry. After you hang up, and process it, and think about it, it’s intriguing. But I love Boulder and everything there is about our team, the coaches, our student body and the community.”
Outside of Sanders, the Cowboys haven't been strongly linked to any other candidate. Jones has seemingly gone all-in on trying to convince him to leave college football behind and join the team he won two Super Bowls with during his playing days.