SURPRISE: Did The Dallas Cowboys Just SIGNAL Move To 3-4 Defense with Chidera Uzo-Diribe?

Summary

Locked On Cowboys: Did The Dallas Cowboys Just SIGNAL Move To 3-4 Defense with Chidera Uzo-Diribe?

Date: February 4, 2026
Hosts: Marcus Mosher & Landon McCool

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Episode Overview

This episode explores the Dallas Cowboys' recent defensive staff hires—especially Chidera Uzo-Diribe from Georgia—and whether these moves indicate a shift to a 3-4 defensive scheme under new Defensive Coordinator Christian Parker. Marcus and Landon break down the implications of these coaching hires, discuss what this means for the defensive philosophy and personnel, and provide NFL and schematic context for where the Cowboys’ defense may be headed in 2026.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Introduction & Chidera Uzo-Diribe’s Hiring (01:14–07:00)

• Hiring Background:

  • The Cowboys hired Chidera Uzo-Diribe (pronounced oo-zo duh-REE-bay), previously Georgia's Outside Linebackers Coach, now joining Dallas as their outside linebackers coach.
  • “Hard to beat a better positional coach than a outside linebacker/edge coach from the University of Georgia … that's one of the spots you want to raid.”
    — Landon [02:39]
  • Uzo-Diribe succeeded Dan Lanning (now Oregon’s head coach) and has worked with NFL-level talent like Nolan Smith, Trayvon Walker, and others during Georgia’s Kirby Smart era.

• Quick Ascent in Coaching:

  • Uzo-Diribe is young (33), with a rapid rise through coaching ranks: just one month at TCU before joining Georgia.
  • "To be an outside linebacker coach in the NFL with this limited of a coaching tree, I think tells you a lot about him."
    — Marcus [04:10]

• Youth Movement on Coaching Staff:

  • The Cowboys are trending young across the defensive staff—Christian Parker is a young coordinator, and several position coaches are under 45.
  • "This has really been a trend with the Cowboys ... their defensive coordinator is obviously very young, but the rest of the hires ... the oldest one was 45."
    — Landon [05:05]

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2. Coaching Specialization & Scheme Evolution (06:15–09:38)

• Role Specificity:

  • More specialized coaching roles (e.g., outside linebackers coach) point to an evolved defensive approach.
  • “It's interesting that Christian Parker now has a cornerback coach, a defensive back coach ... and now a guy just to focus on the outside linebackers here.”
    — Marcus [06:15]

• Changing Edge/Line Roles:

  • The responsibilities of “edge” and “defensive tackle” are expanding; players need more versatility.
  • “You're going to be asked to do a lot more things…drop into zones, sim pressure, maybe even two gap on the edge.”
    — Landon [07:00]

• Comparisons to Georgia Defense:

  • Georgia’s outside linebackers (under Uzo-Diribe) are versatile: not just rushing the passer, but dropping into coverage and playing the run, not just “pinning their ears back.”
  • Marcus speculates on further specialization, mentioning some teams now even have a “nickel” or “slot” coach.

"These are not guys that are in a wide nine and they're just pinning their ears back... instead they're guys that are doing all the things that you mentioned."
— Marcus [08:37]

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3. 3-4 Shift? Interpreting the Cowboys’ Defensive Direction (13:35–18:53)

• Are the Cowboys Switching to a 3-4?

  • Evidence points to new archetypes and body types typical of a 3-4 front—except, perhaps, a true nose tackle.
  • "I would imagine that ... we're going to be looking at kind of a 3-4 in the sense that your pass rushers are your outside linebackers."
    — Landon [13:35]
  • The 3-4 won’t resemble Pittsburgh’s classic 3-4; it will be more modern and multiple, with “gap and a half” concepts (seen in Vic Fangio's schemes).

• Scheme Hybridity:

  • Expect more hybrid fronts—a blend of philosophies from Fangio (gap-and-a-half), Brian Flores (attack, sim-pressure), and others.
  • "It's almost like they line up in that way, but the way they're actually attacking the front...is very different."
    — Landon [14:19]

• Historical Comparisons:

  • Marcus and Landon compare it to Wade Phillips’ 2007-08 Cowboys vs. classic Steelers 3-4, highlighting the more modern, attacking style Dallas might use.

• Attacking vs. Stacking:

  • Unlike traditional 2-gap “stack and shed,” this defense will emphasize attacking the shoulder of offensive linemen, creating disruption, and using player versatility.
  • "Is it going to be more attacking than stacking and shedding? ... I imagine it's going to be a lot of what we're used to, getting upfield, attacking the quarterback.”
    — Marcus [17:23]

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4. Impact on Key Cowboys Personnel (18:53–20:31)

• Fitting the Scheme to Players:

  • The “gap and half” and hybrid approaches may suit agile, disruptive tackles like Osa Odighizuwa and Chauncey Golston.
  • “A guy like Osa Odighizuwa with his explosive upfield movements…it's about getting at his shoulder explosively and then using that kind of speed to power.”
    — Landon [19:20]

• Third Down Looks:

  • On passing downs, look for more “sim pressures” (deceptive blitzes) and diverse looks, mixing in elements from Fangio and Flores.
  • “That’s where the secret sauce is going to be. ... Mixing exotic Flores blitzing fronts with the Fangio back end.”
    — Landon [20:31]

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5. Marcus Dixon: Defensive Line Coach Profile (24:19–28:19)

• Marcus Dixon’s Background:

  • Has worked under both Fangio (Denver) and Flores (Minnesota)—seen as an asset for flexibility and teaching.
  • "He has similar kind of experience under Flores at Minnesota ... those are very different kinds of fronts."
    — Landon [24:19]

• Teaching Skills:

  • Dixon is regarded as a highly skilled teacher, especially working with defensive tackles and younger players.
  • “He's considered one of the best teachers. ... I see him working a lot with defensive tackles.”
    — Marcus [26:03]

• Clear Scheme Direction:

  • The staff is now filled with coaches handpicked for their technique and scheme fit, paralleling the offensive staff overhaul from the previous year.
  • “You're hiring the guy who has expertise teaching the techniques that make sense for the kind of defense you want to play ... clarity that we're getting in this hiring cycle.”
    — Landon [26:34]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Coaching Youth:

  • “It's just shocking to see that you're getting 33 year old coaches now ...” — Landon [05:05]

• Pedigree of Uzo-Diribe:

  • “Worked with a lot of NFL players ... including Nolan Smith and worked with Walker last year and Williams ... pretty high praise.”
    — Landon [02:39]

• Scheme Explanation:

  • “It's a blend. I think that's the other kind of Flores part of this influence too. ... Wouldn't be surprised if you've got a pair of four tech, four eyes and then a zero technique who is truly two-gapping on that play...”
    — Landon [16:41]

• Teaching Emphasis:

  • “It's about like teaching them, you know, the hi hat, low hat ... in a system where they're going to be doing more gap and a half stuff, that's just going to be part of what they do.”
    — Landon [26:34]

• Scheme & Staff Philosophy:

  • “You're pulling great coaches from the college ranks at a level where you have to teach these guys ... and the day (NIL), it's already very professional.”
    — Landon [28:07]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Chidera Uzo-Diribe Hiring & Background: 01:14–07:00
• Coaching Specialization & Edge Role Changes: 06:15–09:38
• 3-4 Defense Speculation & Rationale: 13:35–18:53
• Scheme Fit for Cowboys’ DTs (Osa, etc.): 18:53–20:31
• Third Down Subpackages/Sim Pressures: 20:31–21:39
• Marcus Dixon: Defensive Line Coach Profile: 24:19–28:19

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Summary & Takeaways

• The coaching hires—especially of Uzo-Diribe for OLBs—signal a detailed, modern defensive approach under Christian Parker.
• Evidence strongly suggests the Cowboys will move to more 3-4, hybrid, and versatile fronts, blending influences from Fangio, Flores, and others.
• The defensive staff is now highly specialized and tailored to teaching the core philosophies of this new defense, mirroring the offensive overhaul from a year ago.
• Personnel like Osa Odighizuwa are expected to thrive in these hybrid, attack-based roles requiring both disruption and gap-responsibility versatility.
• There’s clear optimism and strong schematic direction for the 2026 Cowboys defense—with an emphasis on young, high-upside teachers and adaptable player roles.

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This summary preserves the knowledgeable, conversational tone of Marcus and Landon, and provides non-listeners with a thorough, engaging breakdown of the episode’s major topics and moments.

Transcript

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[A]

The.

[E]

Dallas Cowboys have hired a coach that almost guarantees that they'll be running a 34 next season. We'll tell you what that means next. You are Locked On Cowboys, your daily Dallas Cowboys podcast, part of the Locked On Podcast network. Your team every day. Welcome back to the Locked on Cowboys Podcast, part of the Locked On Podcast network. Your team every day. We'd like to thank you for making us the number one sports podcast network. I am your host Marcus Moser. He is Lynn, that is Landon. Big shout out to Landon for filling in for me during Tuesday's show. I was out on patern eternity leave. Didn't get fired by the Vikings, which of course is really good. Heard the joke on the show, but appreciate everybody for all the well wishes on today's show. Lana, we've got a busy one. The Cowboys continue to upgrade this coaching staff on the defensive side of the ball. We're going to talk about Marcus Dixon, who was officially hired as the defensive line coach, but I want to talk about a new hire that came out late on Tuesday night. Chidera Uza Daribay, a outside linebackers coach at Georgia who will be filling in in the same capacity for the Cowboys in 2026 under Christian Parker. What do you think of the hiring?

[A]

Well, first of all, I mean, just from a pedigree standpoint, hard to beat a better positional coach than a outside linebacker edge coach from the University of Georgia who's been there during the tenure of the Kirby Smart era of Georgia. Pretty, pretty high Praise a pretty high, highly elevated spot if you're going to, you know, go down into the college ranks to grab a position coach, definitely one of the spots that you would probably want to raid. Right. And just to kind of even further that pedigree, he took over that job from Dan Lanning, who is the current Oregon head coach who had them all the way up in the college playoffs as well. So, yeah, a guy that clearly has a lot of experience, has worked with a lot of NFL players, having been a defensive coach at Georgia, lots of, you know, first round picks, including Nolan Smith and worked with, with Walker last year and Williams, despite them not necessarily playing outside linebacker because he is kind of the designated edge rusher, you know, technique guy. Again, it's, it's interesting that, you know, it's worth noteworthy and I'm sure we'll get into this next, that he was hired and came from a position that was called outside linebacker coach. Right. Not defensive end coach. Right. And I think that that kind of is an indication of exactly the kind of skill set that they're going to be looking to deploy on the edge starting next year, which I think is, you know, kind of indicating a shift from where they were this last season in 2025. And really since, I mean, for a very long time it feels like.

[E]

And we should mention he is a former Colorado Buffalo who played defensive end throughout his career. He was signed as an undrafted free agent, I believe, with the Saints, if I remember correctly. And he's actually related, I think he's first cousins with Osa Humanor, who you'll remember from the Giants, number 72. So he's, I mean, he's got a long history of being around the game. He's very young, which is kind of a trend with Christian Parker. But he's also somebody who really accelerated kind of in this path to coaching where it was one year he was at tcu. Actually, it wasn't even a year, it was a month. And then he, he got hired at Georgia. Coincidentally, those two teams met in the national championship game that year. But he's somebody who has risen up the ranks really fast. And to be a, you know, outside linebacker coach in the NFL with this limited of a coaching tree, I think tells you a lot about him.

[A]

Yeah, I mean, not to date myself too much, but I saw his birth date and I was like, oh, I, I actually am conscious of what that date was and this is a very, very young coach and I. It's just shocking to see that you're getting 33 year old coaches now in these ranks, whether it's head coach or just these position coaches. But then this has really been a trend with the Cowboys. Obviously they, especially on the defensive side, they have gone out. Their defensive coordinator is obviously very young, but the rest of the hires that they've made so far have all been. I think the oldest one is. Was 45, so.

[E]

And that's ancient. I mean, anybody 45. Oh, my goodness, that's old.

[A]

Please tweet with us. Let's, let's. Enough of that, please. Yeah, I do think that. I do think it's. It's obviously a trend and I think it's, it's, you know, if you're going to be going to get teachers, guys who are going to be hands on, you want guys that have played the game. You want guys especially I think, on the defensive side, right. Like you want guys who will be hands on and be physical to kind of show you the techniques physically. And I think that that's probably some of the appeal with the guy that we'll talk about a little bit later in the show as well. So, yeah, I, I think they've clearly got a archetype that they're looking for with these position coaches following it to.

[E]

A T. The other thing that I find fascinating is that you're seeing more specifications at the, you know, on the defense, right. It used to be you'd have defensive line coach, linebacker coach, secondary coach, and maybe you would have a cornerback coach, an assistant defensive line coach to have a outside linebackers coach. Pretty rare even in today's NFL. There are a lot of teams that just, they're, they, they don't, they don't invest that many bodies into one, you know, spot on defense. I think it's interesting that Christian Parker now has a. On a cornerback coach, a defensive back coach. We're going to talk about their defensive line coach here in a little bit. They're going to get a linebacker coach at some point. And now you've got a guy just to focus on the outside linebackers here.

[A]

Yeah, I mean, I will say this. I mean, we'll talk about this a little bit in the next segment too, I think. But I, I think with this kind of new defense that they're, that they're moving to the positions of defensive tackle and edge, however you want to define that, are going to even widen. Like they're the kind of responsibilities in the way that they're played. The differences are going to be even broader. And I think having specific coaches there to teach you kind of all the techniques and like we talked about, especially with on the edge, right, because you've got to now, you're not just getting up field. You're not just going after the quarterback or just playing the run on the way to the quarterback. Right. Like we've seen previously in this, in these defenses that the Cowboys have had, you're going to be asked to do a lot more things. You're going to ask to be a more versatile player. You're going to be asked to, to drop into hook and into the flat zones on fire blitzes and you're going to be asked to sim pressure. You're going to be asked to maybe even two gap on the edge. Like, because we're going to have a defensive line that, I mean, we don't know yet. Again, all this is yet to be confirmed, but based on the hiring that we're seeing, it feels like this is going to be a very varied front. And if you're going to have very multiple, very varied front, you got to have defensive players that have a wide variety of techniques because you're going to be asked to do a bunch of different things when you're deployed. And I think, you know, it's, it's like I said, the job responsibility between defensive tackle and edge used to be, hey, we're both getting up field as hard into this gap as quick as we can and try to disrupt things. Now there's a little bit more nuance here, so you need to kind of separate out those positions like little bit more.

[E]

Well, and that's why when I thought of Georgia, you think of their outside linebackers and again, a lot of these guys moved around a lot, but like, yeah, Mikel Williams and Trayvon Walker and Jalen Walker, like, these are not guys that are in a wide nine and they're just pinning their ears back and getting up field like a Rod Marinelli would have loved, right. Instead, they're guys that are doing all the things that you mentioned where you're having to drop in the zones, you're rushing, you're. You're being sound against the run. And I again, that takes a lot of effort and a lot of work to do that job really well. And I think that's why you're seeing somebody, you know, like him get hired. And I also wonder we, and we saw a couple teams do this across the league. Like, I wonder if the Cowboys are going to hire a, you know, a slot coach, a slot cornerback coach. I think it was maybe Tennessee that hired a nickel coach because that job is so different than what an outside cornerback is. I don't think it's the worst, you know, worst idea in the world to get somebody in there who specializes in coaching that one position.

[A]

It's a, it's a unique position, right. And it's a position that nowadays is a starting position. And as we get further and further along, you look at teams like Seattle that are in the super bowl, they're playing nickel as often as they can, and they dare you to try to get them out of nickel, right? And they won't come out of it because they've got a really strong player. If the Cowboys get somebody that they feel like they want to play like that, the full, like full time, that may even increase the amount of they want to play nickel. And how does that fit schematically? How do they fit the run? That. That way you've got to have a strong player who can come down and play the run, and then you got to have a system that can kind of support having all those light bodies on the field all at once.

[E]

All right, let's talk more about the Chidera Uza de Rebay hiring and what that means for the Cowboys defense in 2026. We'll get to that next this episode is brought to you by TurboTax. Tax season doesn't have to take over your life this year TurboTax is making it easier than ever to just hand things off and move on with your day. With TurboTax Full Service, you can have your taxes done for you by a trusted expert, start to finish, without all of the guesswork. Instead of spending hours trying to figure out forms, you can meet with a local TurboTax expert in person or connect online. They handle everything from W2s to self employed forms and work to get every deduction possible. So for a limited time, you can have your taxes done by a local TurboTax expert for just a hundred and fifty dollars all in. If a TurboTax expert didn't file for you last year, all you have to do is file by Feb. 28, take taxes off your plate and get back to your life. Visit turbotax.com local to book your appointment today. This episode is brought to you by BetterHelp. February can be a lot. Flowers, candy, stuffed animals, and so much to talk about relationships. And honestly, it could feel like everyone else has it all together in their love life. But here's the truth. Whether you're married, you're dating, you're single, or you're just focusing on you, most people are still figuring it out. And no matter where you are in your romantic journey, therapy can help you find your way. It can help you get clear on what you want, what feels heavy, and how to take off some of that pressure again. It's easy to assume that everyone has the perfect relationship, but most people are always working through something and and therapy can help you recognize patterns that might be weighing your relationships relationships down. It can help you communicate better, set healthier boundaries, and stop carrying everything alone. BetterHelp has licensed therapists in the US and they do the initial matching work for you so you can focus on your goals. And if you want to switch therapists, you can do it at any time. Sign up and get 10% off at betterhelp.com/locked on that is betterhelp.com LockedOn. Welcome back to the Locked on Cowboys podcast. We'd like to thank you for making us your first listen every single day. If you haven't done so already, check out the new Everydayer club. You're going to get ad free access to the Locked on Cowboys podcast and so much more. Go to locked on cowboys.supercast.com or tap the link in the show notes to learn more. All right, Landon, everything has been pointing towards the Cowboys moving to a 3 4. Whether that's Christian Parker's background, some of the moves that they made, maybe even last year, you know, at the end of the year when it came to you, our five man fronts. Again, we're sitting here on February 4th. Is it your opinion the Cowboys are going to be moving to a 34 this year?

[A]

I think it, I think it depends on what we're talking about. But yes, I think if you're talking about kind of seeing the archetypes, the body types of a 3, 4 defense, except with maybe the exception of a true nose tackle, I would say we'll see how that plays out. But I would imagine that, you know we are going to be looking at the kind of 3, 4 in the sense that your pass rushers are your outside linebackers. Right. You're going to have three, a lot of kind of three down linemen that are all kind of defensive tackle sized bodies. That's you're going to see a lot of that. I don't think that people should be thinking like 70s Pittsburgh Steelers or you.

[E]

Know, like even 2000 Pittsburgh Steelers.

[A]

Even 2000.

[E]

Think of it like that, right?

[A]

Yeah. Even though they interviewed a Steelers coach. I, I don't think very different, very different. I, I think that what we're think looking at More is a more of. Because, I mean, look, there has been some things that kind of have flown in the face of that Marcus Dixon obviously came from, you know, had some time with. With. With Parker at Denver under Fangio. And Fangio plays some two gap. But more than that, he plays what's called gap in the half scheme. Right. And I think that to me, especially with the kind of players that you have, like, that is probably going to blend better with a little bit more one gap stuff that they'll do on pass rush downs. Right. Because you've got a guy who came from the Flores system, for goodness sake. So it's not like they're going to be planning on actually just lining up heads up on the offensive lineman and trying to, you know, grab them and then peek around them. With technique, I think it's more of they're getting upfield, they're attacking the shoulder, they're controlling the blocker with the shoulder. But then they're also playing having a fallback gap that they go to that they're responsible to in the run game, and that allows them to play with kind of three Downman looks in nickel kind of shell coverage that gives you an extra person to deploy either even as a cover guy or in rush. So there is going to be times when you're going to see things like three defensive tackle bodies and you're going to identify it with a. With, you know, two, maybe two outside linebackers, even rush the passenger. You're going to say, that looks like a three, four. Like, I know it, but, you know, it's kind of deceiving it. It's almost like they line up in that way. But the way that they're actually attacking the. The front, the way that they're coming off the line of scrimmage is very, very different than. Than, you know, like Igor Olshansky came off the line when. When he was your five technique that sort of.

[E]

Well, and again, I don't want to get too into the weeds here, but can I compare it and contrast it or at least ask you to? Yeah, let's use that Wade Phillips defense that we saw in 2007, 2008. Now that had Chris Caney, Igor Shansky. I think Marcus Spears was still in the team. Those weren't really penetrating defensive tackles, but I think it probably is going to look more similar to that than if you saw, like, what Pittsburgh was running in the early 2000s with Casey Hampton and Aaron Smith and Brett Kiesel, you know. You know, and what that looked like.

[A]

I. I Think, look, look, there's some LeBeau in Fangio stuff. So like, you know, like LeBeau is probably a grandfather to this system in some ways. Right, of course. But, but, but yeah, I think that the more modern way of attacking this is, is even going beyond one gap and two gap and it's, and it's using these kind of hybrids and I think that's the other kind of Flores part of this influence too. Right. Is that I wouldn't be surprised if you've got, you know, a, a pair of four tech, four eyes and then a zero technique who is, who is truly two gapping on that play. But everybody else is trying to get up field, right, Just so they can steal back a gap in that sort of way in the rank game. So I, I, yeah.

[E]

Is it good? Is it going to be more, assuming it's going to be more attacking rather than stacking and shedding and holding your gap. Correct?

[A]

Yeah. I mean, when you're talking about if there, if it's a one gap, you know, in a pass rush, third down situation. Yeah, I imagine it's going to be, you know, a lot of what we were expecting, I'm sorry, what we're used to, right. Getting up field, attacking the quarterback in, in like the early down situations. It's a hybrid kind of. Right? You're, it's, with one gap, you are literally engaging with the offensive lineman and trying to, you know, separate and then peek at where the play is happening and then making the play there in, I'm Sorry, that's in a 2 gap. In a 1 gap, you're trying to get in, just get in the gap. You're trying to get past the offensive lineman. In a gap and a half scheme, you're attacking the shoulder of the offensive lineman. So you're kind of doing both. You're not trying to just slip past them. You're trying to control the block by attacking one of the shoulders and then having enough wherewithal. I think they call it drag or there's a technical term for it, having the wherewithal to recognize that, oh, the play is going backside backdoor from where I'm used to and being responsible for the other side of that body. So being able to get over to that other gap if you need to. So it's a little bit of a hybrid. That's why you see kind of some three, four looking fronts and, and they may do some, some true two gapping, but I, I would not expect that to be their base. I mean, beyond the fact that obviously Nickel is the new base in defense.

[E]

Well, my question for you then is okay, because I think if you're thinking of a two gapping, I don't think that suits Oso Digizua that well. I think Quinn can do it, but I don't think that's playing to his strikes. Do you think this version of their defense does play water the strikes? Because the goal is to get the shoulder right and to explode off the line and kind of beat them to a spot. I would assume that's where OSA and Quinn are going to thrive here.

[A]

Think about it as the difference between a speed rush and a speed to power rush. Right? Like you're getting, you're getting in, you're using the speed to get into the guy and then you're controlling him if you need to get back and be responsible for the backside in the run game. But ultimately you are still trying to do a little bit of both. You're not just necessarily, you know, building a wall and being standing still and not being moved. You're. There's vertical displacement that is supposed to be happening by the defensive tackle. So that's all a long winded way of saying a guy like Oso Digizua with his explosive upfield movements, it's not just about getting in the gap now, it's about getting in, getting it at his shoulder explosively and then using that kind of speed to power to like hump move him back or to displace the blocker so he can't complete the block on you.

[E]

One more thing from this 34 we saw like underweight Phillips, you get into like a third down and they would just always rush five. And honestly, in a lot of early downs, they would rush five and that would be with what Greg Allison, Demarcus Ware, and then your three down lineman. Is that going to be the plan, do you think, on a lot of these passing downs or do you think we'll see them take a defensive tackle off the field and have your traditional nickel with two linebackers behind it?

[A]

Well, I think that's. This is where it gets interesting, right? Like, because Fangio has a lot of kind of three, two nickel stuff. So it does account for having three defensive tackles on the, on the, on the field in a nickel situation. But I mean, obviously they play a lot of four down stuff too. I think that the extra kind of twist to this defense that we're going to see is some of the kind of Flores, you know, I would, I don't want to necessarily kind of Vance Joseph comparison But like, I think you're going to see more sim pressures, you know, more blitzing maybe than what you saw from those kind of old Wade Phillips defenses. I think on third down you're going to see the kind of that's where the secret sauce is going to be. I think it's mixing these kind of exotic Flores flunts or kind of different attacking blitzing fronts with the the Fangio back end of it. The kind of Flores up front, Fangio in the back sort of situation where if you can find a way to mix those together and that's kind of what we saw with the defensive coordinator the Jaguars had and it had a lot of success kind of mixing Fangio back ends with really interesting fronts. So maybe that's what the plan is with Parker. That's kind of the last piece of the puzzle we still need to figure out.

[E]

All right, let's talk about the new defensive line coach for the Dallas Cowboys. He's got a great name, Marcus Dixon. We'll talk about his role with the defense next. Let's be real. No one starts a business for the joy of calculating tax withholdings or managing payroll spreadsheets. But that's where Gusto comes in to take the stress of out of payroll benefits and HR so you could focus on running your business and supporting your team. Gusto is the all in one remote friendly and HR platform that makes managing your team simple, transparent and fast. Whether you're hiring, onboarding or paying employees, Gusto helps you do it all from one place without the hassle or the hidden fees. Unlimited payroll runs for just one monthly price, which means no surprise charges at the end of the month. Try gusto [e-mail] lockdown NFL and get three months free when you run your first payroll. That's right, three months of free [e-mail] locked on NFL one more time that is gusto.com lockedonnfl this episode is brought to you by Home Chef. As the new year gets going, a lot of people are trying to simplify their routines and dinner is always a big one. Between busy work days, cold winter nights and packed schedules, having an easy and reliable dinner plan makes a huge difference. And that's where Home Chef comes in. Home Chef takes the stress out of cooking by delivering fast pre portioned ingredients right to your door. With easy to follow recipes that actually taste great. They're rated number one by users of other meal kits for quality, convenience, value, taste and recipe ease. And it's easy to see why meals come ready to fit your schedule, 30 minute recipes, oven ready trays or quick lunches. And for a limited time, Home Chef is offering our listeners 50% off your first box, free shipping and free dessert for life. All you have to do is go to homechef.com laton that's home chef.com lockedon for 50% off your first box, free shipping and free dessert for life. Must be an active subscriber to receive free dessert. Welcome back to the Locked on Cowboys podcast. We'd like to thank you for making us your first listen of the day. Lane of the Cowboys have officially hired Marcus Dixon to be their new defensive line coach. What can you tell us about him?

[A]

Yeah, I mean, we kind of hinted at it a little bit earlier, right. He's an interesting guy because he has experience with Parker at Denver under, you know, the Fangio kind of system he has. He has similar kind of experience under Flores at Minnesota. So it's, it's, it's interesting because those are very different kind of fronts, right. And we talk, we talked all about it in the last segment and just to kind of dive a little bit deeper into the Flores side of things, I mean, it truly is kind of a very versatile, very multiple front. Whereas Fangio in Denver especially was very kind of stagnant and very, kind of very, you know, like we talked about, they played a lot of 404, you know, some, some stuff where the guys were reduced even further than that. But, you know, very straightforward. You know, they didn't change it a lot. Fangio is constantly having guys attacking from, you know, all angles. They're lining guys up at different spots and they're also using, you know, different techniques for each position. So it's not just like you're getting the same guy except, oh, he's in this gap and always in this gap. Like, you know, he's, they stress kind of the three technique has a different alignment than the one technique and that in all the way out. So it's really, really a very interesting and broad experience that he's had over the last five years of the NFL and two kind of extreme ends of the spectrum of defensive coaches. I am kind of fascinated to see exactly what the plan is here because I think, you know, the fronts and with, with what the Cowboys have already invested there, that's going to be the key to this defense if they're going to have success in 2026.

[E]

And one of the things that you read a lot about him is that he's considered like one of the best teachers, right. And I do think there's a lot of young coaches on the staff land. And he's, he's certainly not old by a coach. I think he's 41. But this is somebody who is really well respected who again is going to be focusing, I think a lot of the defensive tackles here. He's going to focus on the group as, you know, as a, you know, working together. But I wouldn't be surprised, you know.

[A]

Right.

[E]

I see him working a lot with defensive tackles.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, I agree. And I think that that's, you know, it's about like teaching them, you know, the, the, the hi hat, low hat, you know, the, the kind of, hey, what are your eyes telling you and what does that mean that you need to do? And again, in a system where they're going to be doing more gap and a half stuff, I mean, that's just going to be part of what they do. We don't, I just don't know to what degree, but that, I mean, just, I have to imagine for a lot of these back end coverages to work, you know, you're going to want to play that. So just teaching that technique, which is a little bit different than some people have or have learned so far. I think it's, you want this kind of guy. And again, that's going back to why. That's why they hired the guys that they hired at the cornerback coach position who has experience with quarters. You know, you're hiring the guy who has expertise teaching the techniques that you, that make sense for the kind of defense you want to play. And that's again, pointing back to the clarity that we're getting in this hiring cycle.

[E]

It just feels so much like what we saw on the offensive side of the ball a year ago when Brian Schottenheimer was filling in, you know, kind of building his staff. He wasn't just bringing back all the same guys that Mike McCarthy had. He wanted to go out and get guys that he thought fit his scheme. That's why he went out and signed. They hired Clayton Adams to be the offensive coordinator. They brought in Connor Riley from the college ranks to be their offensive line coach. They signed Junior Adams from, I think it was Oregon to be their wide receiver coach because they thought together these guys are going to run our scheme. And that resulted in one of the NFL's best offenses.

[A]

Yeah, you're pulling great coaches from the college ranks at a level where you have to teach these guys. And especially the day nil, it's very, it's already very professional. So it's not a very difficult leap for the these guys.

[E]

All right, that is it for today's show. We'd like to thank you for making Laton Cowboys your first listen. Make sure you subscribe and follow the podcast so you get all of the latest episodes. And if you never miss an episode, the everyday club is built for you. Get Locked on Cowboys ad free plus members only, Discord Access and so much more. Head over to LockedOn Cowboys Supercast.com to join the club. And for those of you on video, we can send you the first ever 24.7national NBA YouTube channel and on audio, make your second listen the locked On NFL podcast. Follow Landon on Twitter @mccoolbcb. I'm @Marcus Underscore Moser and we'll see you right back here tomorrow.

[F]

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