The search for the next Dallas Cowboys head coach was far less extensive than many predicted it might be. Instead of interviewing a slew of candidates that included successful college football coaches, Jerry Jones and Stephen Jones met with a couple of former NFL coaches before settling on Mike McCarthy.

According to ESPN.com’s Todd Archer, Dallas didn’t reach out to Lincoln Riley. There were rumors dating back to last year that the Cowboys might consider replacing Jason Garrett with Oklahoma’s head coach.

Riley, 36, has gone 12-2 in all three of his seasons as the Sooners’ coach. He’s also been defeated in the College Football Playoff Semifinal each year, most recently losing to LSU 63-28 on Dec. 28.

Riley was the heavy betting favorite to be the Cowboys coach for the 2020 NFL season when it was announced Sunday that Garrett would not return with the team.

There was also speculation that former Florida and Ohio State coach Urban Meyer could be a candidate for the Cowboys. Instead, Dallas focused on men that had previous success as an NFL head coach.

The Cowboys interviewed Marvin Lewis, who made seven playoff appearances with the Cincinnati Bengals from 2003-2018. Cincinnati had a 12-year postseason drought when they hired Lewis. The Bengals went 2-14 with the NFL’s worst record in 2019 when Lewis was gone after 16 years with the team.

McCarthy had nine playoff appearances in 13 seasons with Green Bay from 2006-2018. The 56-year-old "blew the socks off" the Cowboys with his meeting that lasted more than 12 hours, according to Archer.

The New York Giants, Cleveland Browns and Carolina Panthers all interviewed McCarthy before the news broke Monday that he was headed to Dallas.

Jerry Jones
In this photo, NFL owner Jerry Jones of the Dallas Cowboys stands on the sidelines before the game against the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver, Colorado, Sept. 17, 2017. Getty Images / Matthew Stockman
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