IRVING – Three days after helping the Cowboys whip Buffalo in Super Bowl XXVIII on Jan. 30, 1994, Norv Turner was named Washington's head coach.
Had he not taken the job, he probably could have been named Jimmy Johnson's successor after Johnson's abrupt departure at the end of March.
Nearly 13 years later, Turner is in position to become the seventh coach in team history.
On Sunday, Turner, the Cowboys' offensive coordinator from 1991 to '93, had a lengthy interview with owner and general manager Jerry Jones and executive vice president Stephen Jones and met with outgoing coach Bill Parcells.
Turner is the seventh candidate to meet with the Joneses to be Parcells' successor, and while the team has offered no timetable on naming a coach, no other interviews are scheduled.
"To me, in this league, it's all about timing and circumstance, and the timing of this presents an opportunity," Turner said. "I've got a lot of confidence in the things I can do. I think there are a lot of people in this league that look at it in that manner. I'm confident that if this opportunity happens, it'll be a great opportunity."
Turner compiled a 58-82-1 regular-season record as a head coach in Washington (1994-2000) and Oakland (2004-05). However the Redskins have had one winning season since he was fired with three games to play, and the Raiders recently named their third coach in three seasons.
Having won two Super Bowls with the Cowboys, mentored Troy Aikman and overseen the formation of the Triplets – Aikman, Emmitt Smith and Michael Irvin – Turner has more of an 'in' with Jerry Jones than the other candidates.
Turner said the familiarity helped in the interview process.
"From a comfort level, certainly knowing what Jerry is looking for, from my standpoint now, I hope it helps," Turner said. "There is not that period of time trying to get used to someone or figure someone out. But it was very in-depth. We covered an awful lot of things in the time we were together."
One subject was Garrett, who, according to sources, would be the offensive coordinator if he is not the head coach, and the other was Terrell Owens.
"When I was hired in Oakland, I tried to hire Jason Garrett, so that tells you a little something about how I feel about Jason," Turner said. "He's coached a couple of years now, and even though he's not been coaching [long], he's been acting as a coach for a lot of years, and he's helped a lot of guys get ready to play."
Turner has experience with a controversial receiver as well, having dealt with Randy Moss in Oakland.
"I want to coach good players," Turner said. "When you get into a situation in terms of being with a new team, there's an evaluation process, and there's a lot of things that go into it. I like the players that are here, and T.O. is one of them."
Michael Maloney / S.F. Chronicle
Norv Turner (center) spent the 2006 season as the 49ers' offensive coordinator.
Turner has the support of Aikman, whom he presented at last summer's Pro Football Hall of Fame ceremony, and he has won an NFC East title and playoff game more recently than the Cowboys. In 1999, the Redskins won the division and advanced to the divisional round of the playoffs, only to lose when a field goal snap attempt went awry (sound familiar?).
Turner said he and Parcells had a conversation about the team's personnel. Having beaten the Cowboys in 2004 while with the Raiders, Turner had some understanding of the talent in place.
"This is a great job," Turner said. "It's a good football team. I think the things that Coach Parcells has done have left this team in position where good things are going to happen for it. ... This team was a playoff team, and obviously one play away from going to the next round, so, yeah, there's good players here."
Turner said Sunday was the first time he was inside the team's Valley Ranch facility since he left, and he has been with five teams since.
"It's just a very, very unique place," Turner said. "It hit me again. When you're away from it for some time, you don't realize it, but it certainly hit me at Troy's Hall of Fame induction ceremony and the Cowboy fans, all the people wearing Troy's jersey, just the excitement and energy that's always there with this organization."
The Cowboys don't have any interviews scheduled, and there's no timetable set for hiring a head coach, but plenty happened the last week:
Monday: Bill Parcells retires
Tuesday: Assistants Todd Bowles, Todd Haley and Tony Sparano interview
Wednesday: Jason Garrett interviews
Thursday: Garrett hired; his position unknown
Friday: Wade Phillips interviews
Saturday: Gary Gibbs interviews
Sunday: Norv Turner interviews
