In a move that surprised few, the Dallas Cowboys fired Brian Stewart today. If Jerry Jones continues to follow the my-team-is-in-a-death-spiral playbook and lets Jason Garrett walk out the door, Wade Phillips is likely safe for at least one more season.

Stewart was far from one of the core problems at Dallas. His unit was eighth in total defense, and led the league in sacks. He was, however, quite publicly stripped of his play calling duties after the 34-14 loss to the Rams this season.

Despite the best efforts of the owner, the coaching staff, and the players, the Dallas Cowboys may yet find a back door into the playoffs. After last night’s loss to the Baltimore Ravens, where the Cowboys defense completely collapsed in the closing minutes, the playoff hopes looked quite bleak.