Cowboys defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus’ unit ends season on a rough note with loss to Giants

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — The Dallas Cowboys did little to help defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus’ job security by allowing 34 points and 380 yards in their season-ending loss at the New York Giants on Sunday.

Owner Jerry Jones before the game said the defense’s struggles go beyond Eberflus but stopped short of guaranteeing the assistant will be back on coach Brian Schottenheimer’s staff moving forward.

“It’s much broader than that,” Jones said before the 34-17 defeat gave his team a 7-9-1 record. “Don’t blame this all on ‘Flus. This took five or six years to get here. This is a product of several years of combinations of philosophies.”

Dallas entered the final week of the season with the worst scoring and passing defenses in the NFL and ranked 30th out of 32 teams overall in Eberflus’ first season in charge. He joined after spending just over 2 1/2 seasons as coach of the Chicago Bears, a tenure that ended with his firing in late November 2024.

It’s the first time in franchise history the Cowboys gave up 30 points a game. They lost four of their final five games, allowing an average of more than 35 points over that stretch.

Getting carved up by Jaxson Dart for 230 yards passing and another 161 on the ground was not a good closing argument for Eberflus.

“We will look at all the stats and have conversations with the players,” said Schottenheimer, who is expected to return for a second season. “He’s a really good defensive coach, but we are going through the process and that starts with myself. There is going to be hard conversations in a good way, and the players and the coaches understand that.

“At the end of the day, until we get all that information, we won’t be able to fix anything.”

The Cowboys could have four D-coordinators in as many years if they move on from Eberflus. Dan Quinn left following the 2023 season to take over as Washington’s coach, and Mike Zimmer was one and done in the role.

Jones praised how Quinn’s defenses played during his three years on the job, while also pointing out that regular-season success on that side of the ball did not translate into the playoffs.

“I can make a case for you that we haven’t had a satisfactory defense for five or six years, really,” Jones said.

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