The Cowboys’ current head coaching search is turning into a homecoming parade for a multitude of former players and assistant coaches who have spent time previously wearing the star.

Among the candidates who have been discussed- albeit with wildly varying degrees of seriousness- are Kellen Moore, Deion Sanders, Jason Witten, Aaron Glenn, Mike Zimmer, and Brian Schottenheimer, all of whom have been on Jerry Jones’s payroll in one position or another over the years.

Now add Anthony Lynn.

Ed Werder of WFAA reports that there is “expressed mutual interest” between Lynn and the Cowboys for the team’s current head coaching vacancy. But despite a desire by both sides to meet, any talks will have to be delayed, as the job Lynn currently holds has him a little busy this week.

Lynn served on Dan Quinn’s staff in Washington this season as the Commanders’ run game coordinator and running backs coach. He’ll be preparing this week to square off against the Eagles with a Super Bowl berth on the line. He knows the divisional rivalries well; one of his first NFL jobs was in elsewhere in the NFC East, in Dallas during the Bill Parcells regime.

An ex-running back himself who played six seasons with the Broncos and 49ers, Lynn is a McKinney native who played his college ball at Texas Tech. After three seasons in Denver as a special teams assistant and two in Jacksonville as RB coach, Lynn found himself back in the Lone Star State as the Cowboys’ running backs coach for the 2005 and 2006 seasons.

Under Lynn, the Cowboys’ rushing attack finished 13th in the league both seasons, with Julius Jones and Marion Barber III as the team’s one-two punch out of the backfield. The team made the postseason in Lynn’s second year with the club, losing to Seattle in the wild-card round on Tony Romo’s infamous mishandled hold of a 19-yard-field goal.

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Lynn left Dallas when Parcells did, landing in Cleveland as the Browns’ RB coach. Stints with the Jets and Bills followed, with assistant head coach duties being added to his plate at both stops. He was promoted to offensive coordinator in Buffalo when Greg Roman was fired early in the 2016 season and then took over as Bills interim head coach late in the season when Rex Ryan was axed.

That led Lynn to get his first official head coaching job, with the Chargers in 2017. He lasted four seasons in Los Angeles, compiling a 33-31 record and going 1-1 in playoff games.

Since then, Lynn served as Lions OC in 2021 and 49ers assistant HC/RB coach in 2022 and 2023 before joining Quinn in Washington.

The Commanders’ ground game this season ranked in the league’s top five in rushing attempts, rushing yards, rushing touchdowns, and yards per carry. Quarterback Jayden Daniels led the team with 891 rushing yards, while Brian Robinson Jr., Austin Ekeler, Jeremy McNichols, and Chris Rodriguez all finished with triple-digit yardage numbers for the year.

And Washington’s deep playoff run will no doubt boost the 56-year-old Lynn’s chances of getting another crack at a head coaching job, whether it’s in Dallas or elsewhere.

“Anthony Lynn is a way better football coach than maybe people give him credit for,” Ryan said of his former assistant on ESPN on Monday. “Jerry is going to be comfortable with him. He’s been in that organization for a while; I think that’s important. Anthony would know what he’s getting into. … Anthony Lynn, I think, makes perfect sense here.”

“He is a dang leader of men,”added Ryan.

But before the Cowboys can talk to him about leading their men in 2025, Lynn will be leading his current burgundy-and-gold-clad troops in a battle for the NFC title and a trip to the Super Bowl.