7 Mike McCarthy replacements Cowboys need to hire after another playoff disaster

5. Bobby Slowik, Houston Texans OC

Many people expected the Houston Texans to be one of the worst teams in the league in the 2023 season. With a rookie quarterback in C.J. Stroud, a rookie head coach in Demeco Ryans, and a roster that seemed a far cry from one that was soon going to be able to contend, the fact of the matter is that this didn't look like a group capable of winning a ton of games.

Fast-forward to the playoffs now and the Texans not only won the AFC South to earn the No. 4 seed in the conference but also trounced the Cleveland Browns in the Wild Card Round. And at the heart of that was coordinator Bobby Slowik's offense, still led by the rookie Stroud, who completely diced up one of the best defenses in the league in the 45-14 win.

Another youngster, the 36-year-old Slowik was brought by Ryans from the San Francisco 49ers to Houston after serving as the passing game coordinator last season. Though the Texans only ranked 14th in Offensive DVOA this season, the progression of that unit with a ton of young pieces playing huge roles was a testament to Slowik and coming from the Kyle Shanahan tree.

In an ideal world, the Cowboys would just hire Kyle Shanahan or Sean McVay. Of course, that's virtually impossible at this point. Having said that, Slowik is a massive rising star in the coaching ranks whose only major drawback is the fact that he doesn't have but the one year of experience even as a coordinator. The upside of him working with Dak Prescott and the Dallas offense, however, is immense.