Cowboys Ex Coach Moves Due To 'Personal Reasons'
The Dallas Cowboys have deployed just nine head coaches in their 66-year history. One of the top coaches for the Cowboys in terms of winning percentage was Wade Phillips, whose 60.7 percent win rate is tied for second all-time in franchise history, trailing Barry Switzer (62.5%).
Phillips coached the Cowboys from 2007-2010, sporting a 34-22 record with the Cowboys before being fired after Week 9 of 2010, where the Cowboys began the season 1-7. Phillips had ended a 13-year playoff win drought for the Cowboys in 2009, taking down the Philadelphia Eagles in the Wild Card Round 34-14.
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Since his time in Dallas, Phillips has kept busy. After the Cowboys, he became the defensive coordinator (and eventual interim head coach) of the Houston Texans, and later took defensive coordinator positions with the Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Rams.
Phillips has the distinction of being the head coach of more teams NFL (six) than any other person in league history.
Phillips made the jump to the XFL in 2022, when he took over the Houston Roughnecks, earning the franchise's first playoff berth. Phillips then jumped to the San Antonio Brahmans of the newly-merged UFL. He repeated his Roughnecks record of 7-3 with the Brahmans, going all the way to the UFL Championship, losing to the Birmingham Stallions.
On Wednesday, the UFL announced that Phillips would be taking a leave of absence from the Brahmans for "personal reasons" - but left the door open for the soon-to-be 78-year-old to return if he is willing and able.
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"The UFL is extremely grateful for the leadership that Wade has delivered to the UFL as head coach of the San Antonio Brahmas," the league said in a statement (via NBC's ProFootballTalk). "The credibility that he has brought to the UFL as a Head Coach validates what we are building as a league."
"This coaching legend has the respect of everyone in the league as well as throughout the entire football community for his dedication and accomplishments as a coach for over 50 years," the release continued. "If and when Wade is ready to return to the sidelines, the entire UFL Family will be there to cheer him on."
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