Following the departure of Dan Quinn to Washington, we all knew there would be changes to the defense.
Mike Zimmer was hired as the newest defensive coordinator for the Cowboys, returning to the team that gave him his first opportunity.
Zimmer was the Cowboys’ defensive coordinator from 2000-2006 before coaching stints in Atlanta, Cincinnati, and Minnesota.
It appears the Cowboys are giving Zimmer at least a portion of autonomy in choosing his staff.
Breaking news from ESPN NFL Nation reporter Todd Archer says Dallas has hired away former NFL defensive lineman Jeff Zgonina from the Commanders.
Washington has acquired Dan Quinn and Joe Whitt Jr. from the Cowboys, so taking a coach away from their staff in return has a humorous sense of irony.
In a related move, former 1st-round pick Greg Ellis was signed to be Zgonina’s assistant defensive line coach.
Playing Career
Jeff Zgonina had a fruitful career longer than the average player with stints on seven different teams in 17 years of suiting up as a defensive tackle.
He was drafted in the 7th round by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1993 but only spent two years there before bouncing around Carolina, Atlanta, St. Louis, and Indianapolis.
It wasn’t until 1999, his second stint in St. Louis, that Zgonina would establish himself as a valuable contributor to a defense.
Zgonina even won a Super Bowl on that Rams team, spending four years there before playing the last seven years of his career in Miami and Houston.
He retired at the age of 39, finishing his career with 458 tackles, 47 tackles for loss, 26.0 sacks, 13 fumble recoveries, and one interception.
Coaching Career
Zgonina’s coaching career began in 2013 as an assistant defensive line coach with the Houston Texans, the last team he played for before retiring.
After three years in Houston, he took the same position with the New York Giants for one season.
Then Zgonina got his first opportunity when the San Francisco 49ers hired him as their defensive line coach in 2017.
In three years by the bay, Zgonina coached productive players like DeForest Buckner, Solomon Thomas, Arik Armstead, and Nick Bosa.
He then was hired by Washington as assistant defensive line coach in 2020 before being promoted to head defensive line coach for 2023.
He was not retained by Washington, but that’s not surprising considering they have a new head coach and defensive coordinator.
Zimmer welcomes Zgonina to his staff, and hopefully, he can bring better technique and discipline to a defensive line that sorely needs it.
Greg Ellis
In a corresponding move, the Cowboys have also hired former 1998 1st-round pick Greg Ellis to the staff as the assistant defensive line coach.
Ellis spent 11 of his 12 NFL seasons with the Cowboys and was a solid piece of the defense in that time.
Unfortunately, Ellis is more known for being the player Jerry Jones and the Cowboys chose over future Hall of Fame WR Randy Moss, a decision that haunts Cowboys Nation to this day.
His accomplishments with the Cowboys shouldn’t be overlooked.
He finished his Cowboys career with 502 tackles, 75 tackles for loss, 20 forced fumbles, 11 fumble recoveries, four interceptions, and two career touchdowns.
This is Ellis’ first opportunity to coach an NFL team.