After the most points allowed in the league in 2025, Jerry Jones & Co. have finally pulled the trigger on a major change. The Cowboys moved on from Matt Eberflus and turned to Christian Parker to lead the defense. But still, one Cowboys legend believes the team’s problems started long before the hire. He claimed Dallas wouldn’t be in such a mess if they had kept Eberflus’s predecessor, Al Harris. 

“I thought we should have kept Al Harris in the first place and never let Al Harris go,” Emmitt Smith told USA Today Sports. “That’s a big mistake on the Dallas Cowboys. Bringing in some of these so-called gurus on the defensive side and the offensive side. Even though [Brian Schottenheimer] has turned out to be who Schotty really is, we need a guy that’s defensive-minded, really good at connecting with the players and motivating the players. I think Al Harris was that guy for us.”

Reflecting on Harris’s time in Dallas, the three-time Super Bowl champion highlighted a stark difference in playmaking. Looking at Chicago’s numbers, he highlighted that it could have been Jerry Jones’ biggest mistake to let Harris go. Just a few seasons ago, the Cowboys were among the league leaders in creating turnovers (when Harris handled the defense). 

When Al Harris made the jump from Dallas to Chicago, the takeaway numbers immediately changed. The Bears finished the season among the league leaders in forced turnovers (33), with interceptions driving that point home (23).

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The pressure is now squarely on the newly-hired Parker to prove he can restore the defense to its former glory. When the Hall of Famer was asked if he thought the 34-year-old was the right man to step into the massive void left by Harris, his response was blunt but cautious: “We’ll see.”

This isn’t the first time Smith has looked back fondly on the Harris era. Earlier in November, as the secondary was getting shredded by deep passes, Smith voiced his frustration.

“When I saw how poor our defense looked, the first question I asked myself, especially the secondary, giving up bombs the way they were giving up bombs early on,” Smith recalled. “I said, ‘Who is the secondary coach? Al Harris cannot be there.’ He’s not. He’s in Chicago. And you see, Chicago’s defense is getting turnovers and making plays. The same plays that we used to make.” 

It seems like Smith isn’t alone in reminiscing about those times. The 2025 season was statistically one of the worst in the Cowboys’ defensive performances in history. 

Eberflus was Jones’s personal choice for the job, possibly even selected before Brian Schottenheimer was officially named head coach. But unfortunately, Eberflus struggled from the start.

Micah Parsons’s absence only made things worse. Players didn’t seem to buy into the new system, yet Eberflus appeared unwilling to adapt his plan. The results spoke for themselves when opposing offenses consistently enjoyed career-best performances and the team rarely managed to take the ball away, finishing with some of the lowest turnover numbers in franchise history.

Cowboys co-owner is confident in Christian Parker to lead the defense

In the wake of the Eberflus exit, Dallas hired former Eagles pass game coordinator Parker. At 34, Parker is now the youngest defensive coordinator in the history of the Cowboys. He beat out eight other candidates for the job, largely because of his reputation as a “master teacher.”

Stephen Jones emphasized that Parker’s ability to simplify complex ideas was a major selling point.

“Very, very smart,” Jones said of the hire. “Great communicator… one of our top priorities is to be a great teacher. These defenses are very complicated… he was really good at explaining it not only to coach Schottenheimer and to Will, but to Jerry and myself that you want to make complicated things seem easy… he was just outstanding.”

Parker’s resume is heavily influenced by his time working under legendary DC Vic Fangio. The Cowboys have long admired Fangio’s system. Parker’s plan to use elements of that scheme while adding his own modern touch convinced Jones & Co. that he was the right fit.