The Dallas Cowboys will allow Special Teams Coordinator and Assistant Head Coach Rich Bisaccia to back out of the remainder of his contract. This is likely so that Bisaccia can join Jon Gruden’s staff with the Oakland Raiders.
The news was reported by the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport:
#Cowboys special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia will be allowed out of his contract, sources say. That means he can join Jon Gruden's #Raiders staff, which is the plan.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 3, 2018
Bisaccia’s connection to Gruden goes back to Tampa Bay, where Rich was the special teams coordinator for the Bucs’ Super Bowl championship season and the duration of Gruden’s tenure. He also worked as the running backs coach and assistant head coach under Gruden.
Since joining the Cowboys in 2013, Bisaccia has coached one of the best special teams groups in the NFL. Dan Bailey was the most accurate kicker in NFL history before his recent struggles, Chris Jones is one of the league’s most effective punters, and L.P. Ladouceur is perfection as a long snapper.
The Cowboys had a solid return game with Dwayne Harris and look to be getting back there with Ryan Switzer. Their coverage units have been strong throughout Bisaccia’s time, with Kavon Frazier recently emerging as one of the top special teams players in the game.
Keith O’Quinn is the current assistant under Bisaccia in Dallas. He has been with the team in varying capacities for many seasons. We will have to wait and see if Dallas promotes from within or looks for a new coordinator from the outside.