First-year defensive coordinator Christian Parker has endured a rocky start to his Dallas Cowboys tenure. Once one of the most hyped coaching hires, Parker is now under scrutiny as the Cowboys’ defense continues to struggle, contributing to the team’s 2-3 start.

With the defense failing to meet expectations, NFL analyst Jordan Rodgers believes newly appointed senior defensive assistant Mike Pettine could take over play-calling duties if things don’t improve over the next few weeks.

Jordan Rodgers Raises Questions About Christian Parker’s Future As Cowboys’ Play-Caller

During Wednesday’s episode of ESPN’s “Get Up,” Rodgers explained how moving Parker to the coaching booth could give him a better view of the defense while allowing Pettine to provide veteran leadership on Dallas’ sideline.

“Here’s the thing that I do like about this: Christian Parker’s gotta be in the booth,” Rodgers said. “When you’re a young coordinator, if you can remove the emotion from it and get a better vantage point. Think about defense. When you call defense, it’s all about alignment. It’s all about: Are receivers inside the hatches? Where’s the splits, how are we leveraging this, where are my run fits missing? Where am I successful?”

Rodgers believes that working from the booth could help Parker assess those details more clearly and identify what’s working and where his defense needs to improve.

“So if you can remove the emotions and have that vantage point, it can only be a positive. And now you have a guy like Pettine, who knows your language, who knows how you wanna communicate, who can be on the sideline,” the analyst added.

However, Rodgers also warned that Pettine could eventually take over play-calling duties if the defense continues to struggle.

“But I’m telling you, if this goes sideways in 2-3 weeks, it will absolutely be a conversation that Pettine will be calling plays,” he said.

Pettine brings nearly four decades of coaching experience, including more than two decades in the NFL. He entered the NFL in 2002 as a coaching assistant for the Baltimore Ravens. Pettine later served as the New York Jets’ and Buffalo Bills’ defensive coordinator before becoming the Cleveland Browns’ head coach in 2014.

He also worked as a consultant for the Seattle Seahawks, defensive coordinator for the Green Bay Packers, and senior defensive assistant for the Chicago Bears. Pettine most recently spent the 2025 season as the Minnesota Vikings’ assistant head coach before retiring.

Parker, meanwhile, has 13 years of coaching experience but has spent far less time in the NFL. He entered the league in 2019 as the Green Bay Packers’ defensive quality control coach before becoming the Denver Broncos’ defensive backs coach. Before joining Dallas, he served as the Philadelphia Eagles’ passing game coordinator and defensive backs coach.

After replacing Matt Eberflus as Dallas’ defensive coordinator and revamping the Cowboys’ defense, Parker has struggled to deliver results. Dallas currently has the worst defense in the NFL with a grade of 68.0, according to PFN’s Defense Impact Score. The Cowboys ranked dead last in PFN’s Defense Impact Score last season too, with a 53.4 grade.

Through five games, Dallas is allowing 395.4 yards per game and ranks last in rushing defense, giving up 168.4 yards per game. In Week 5, the Cowboys lost to undrafted rookie QB Jalon Daniels to give the Tampa Bay Buccaneers their first win of the season.

Rodgers may be right that Dallas may rethink who handles defensive play-calling if the struggles continue. But whether that would be enough to turn the defense around is another question altogether.