Cowboys zero in on Eagles' rising star Christian Parker, targeting him to revitalize their struggling defense and bring championship pedigree.
FRISCO - The Dallas Cowboys have made a major decision on the staff of head coach Brian Schottenheimer, with the four-man list of finalists now narrowing to one name.
Dallas' defense - in 2025 arguably the NFL's worst under the leadership of now-fired Matt Eberflus - is about to be steered in a new direction ...
By a very new face.
A source tells me that Dallas, after having narrowed its nine-man interview process down to four candidates, is now "focused'' on poaching an up-and-coming coach from a hated NFC East rival.
And now that deal is done.
The Cowboys will hire Philadelphi Eagles secondary coach and passing game coordinator Christian Parker as their new defensive coordinator.
Parker is only 34, so this is a gigantic step. But his second visit with Dallas, which took place on Wednesday, was an impressive one, I'm told ... and the Cowboys - who finished 7-9-1 in 2025 while missing the playoffs for the second consecutive season - are prepared to hand him the reins here.
Parker has been Philadelphia’s pass-game coordinator since 2024. ... and therefore has a Super Bowl win on his resume. He is credited with guiding a pair of second-year Philly defensive backs to NFL All-Pro honors (that would be cornerback Quinyon Mitchell and slot cornerback Cooper DeJean.)
He’s is the protege of legendary Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, but before that, he worked with the Denver Broncos secondary, and is credited there with helping Patrick Surtain become an All-Pro.
Parker played college football for Richmond and then jumped directly into coaching, spending seven seasons as an assistant at Virginia State, Norfolk State, Texas &M and Notre Dame before he moved to the NFL with the Green Bay Packers as a quality control assistant in 2019.
The Cowboys' three other finalists were Denver aide Jim Leonhard (who Dallas decided to not wait on as the Broncos are about to play in the AFC title game), Vikings aide Daronte Jones and ex-Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon. Dallas cast a wide net here ... but they're about to get their man in Christian Parker.