Unchosen Colorado football DC candidate Rex Ryan casts doubt on fellow DC candidate Mike Zimmer's Cowboys hiring

Unchosen Colorado football defensive coordinator candidate Rex Ryan cast doubt on a fellow Buffs DC candidate, and a man he was competing with for the Dallas Cowboys' DC role, Mike Zimmer, during ESPN's Super Bowl LVIII pregame show.

“I can honestly say right here, first off, I’m not so sure that Zimmer’s got that job right now. Not real sure about that,” Ryan said (h/t The New York Post). “I can honestly say I don’t believe that’s a fact right now.

“But I would say this: The reason I’ve been out for seven years, I’ve never called another head coach or anything like that, but I called Mike McCarthy. “The reason I did is because I want to be on this stage [at the Super Bowl] if I’m going to get back into coaching. I think with this roster the way it is, I think offensively, special teams, and defense — I figured I can make a little bit of an upgrade — that they can be right here. That’s why I was interested.”

Jerry Jones reportedly wanted unchosen Colorado football DC candidate Mike Zimmer for Cowboys

Things get extremely muddy for the Cowboys if Dallas didn't actually close the deal on Zimmer as their defensive coordinator considering owner Jerry Jones personally inserted himself into the hiring process.

"Zimmer has a unique bond and trust with the Jones family, dating back to when he broke into the NFL in 1994 … and stayed with the club all the way until 2006 while working under four different head coaches," Cowboys Country's Mike Fisher prefaced before asking, "The constant during that time, including the final seven seasons of Zimmer's tenure here as the defensive coordinator? Jerry Jones. CowboysSI.com reported early on in this process that the team owner would help make the choice. And that is very much the case here.

"Some will call this 'meddling.' But it’s commonplace in Dallas. Indeed, Zimmer benefited from it through head coaching changes here over the years. And when present coach Mike McCarthy’s first-year carte blanche hire of buddy Mike Nolan didn’t work out? The front office got involved in helping McCarthy choose Quinn."

If Ryan said that on national television without any assurances Zimmer wasn't hired, you can rest assured he won't be employed by Jones' Cowboys anytime soon.