Seriously, Jerry Jones should have never let Payton go on interviews without dangling a big contract in front of him; Parcells basically had the right coach in place for after his regime - much like he did with Belichick and the Jets - and JJ let him leave.
As for the Cowboys, I don't know anymore. I think Garrett had the team going in the right direction until the last two weeks. The Redskins game was downright sloppy and should have NEVER been that close, while the Cards should have never even come close to winning Christmas night - Kitna injury or not. The Cowboys are back to being inconsistent and playing down to their competition.
As far as the coaching staff and roster, obviously, most of that goes with what Jerry Jones does with Garrett. I think the staff does need some work - namely the Defense. I give Paul Pasqualoni has done a fine job, but his schemes don't give OC's fits nor is there anything exotic about how he runs his defense; maybe if he has a full offseason under his belt to work the D he can make some difference, but at this point, the D is the weakest link and being gashed left and right. Dave Campo has done a horrid job with the secondary and probably needs to go. Offensively, if we keep Garrett, the offense will remain the same. I still do believe the offense needs an identity: Jones, Choice, Barber at RB, Austin, Bryant, Williams, Hurd, Ogletree at WR, and Witten, Bennett, Phillips & Gronkowski at TE/FB, what exactly is this team trying to do? Pick a direction, don't stress about having too many toys and making cute trick plays, just go out there and put your best 11 against their best 11 and execute.
Personel wise, the team needs some major work, namely in the Safety and Offensive Line positions. Safety, IMO, is the most integral fix that needs to be addressed this season; with a playmaking Safety - hell even a competent one will do - the defense will have more flexibility: CBs can get double team help, MLBs can patrol the run game and Ware/Spencer wouldn't have to worry about the underneath stuff as much. Sensabaugh should not be a starter next year and Ball had no business being a starter this season.
OL needs a major youth and upgrade movement. Not one OL is under the age of 31 except for Free (26) who has been a pleasant surprise, and most of the OL has been exposed and shown to be old and much less athletic than the 13-3 team of a few seasons ago. The team needs to determine its identity then build an OL according to it. Makes no sense to have mashers and grinders like Davis, Columbo & Kosier only to have them blocking draws and pass plays, just like it would make no sense to have small, athletic OL for a run-heavy offense. Decide the scheme, draft the necessary players, and for ONCE use the top picks on GOOD OL BLUE-CHIPPERS instead of low-round prospect projects.
The special teams has been a backbreaker all season and I believe the team really needs to bring in competition for Buehler this offseason because he simply hasn't panned out. The guy was namely a Kickoff specialist and did his job great last season with having the most Touchbacks in the NFL; this season, he's not even in the top 10. Missing FG's is fine in the name of learning the game for a young kicker, but to miss an XP in the Cards game is inexcusable. Simply put, if Buehler can't even handle his original duties, he has no right handling more important duties.
Other places of need include DL & Safety depth. Jay Ratliff may have had a Pro Bowl & All Pro season last year, but it's clearly shown that teams learned to gameplan against his small frame at the NT position with constant double teams. He's been rendered nearly useless this season. Ratliff is an explosive player, but mainly when he's allowed to attack the backfield and not occupy space which is what he's being asked to do now. With that, teams have been gashing Dallas with the run game because of the huge push in the middle. I believe the combo of Brooking, James, Lee & a new rookie would more than suffice in containing the run, but the DL needs help, depth and size to sure up a defense that lost all it's bite this offseason. With teams being so successful on the run, Ware & Spencer has been made much less effective which blows up the entire premise of the Dallas D.
Players who should be jettisoned for whatever reason:
Martellus Bennett was a bust and would have been surpassed by John Phillips (2nd year, 6th Round pick) had he not been placed on IR at the beginning of the year.
Marion Barber carries a huge pricetag especially for a guy who's running style really has ruined whatever explosiveness he had. I'm sure he will do just fine on another squad - maybe even have a revival year - but at this point, his best days in Dallas are gone.
Leonard Davis should be cut for his huge pricetag and lack of production. Coach Houck did a great job with reviving his career when he first joined Dallas from Arizona a couple years back, but he's steadily declined and was even benched a few times throughout the course of the season. I would through
Roy E Williams into this group too - salary & lack of production - but the Cowboys don't have anyone outside of Bryant & Austin who are reliable enough to consider cutting Roy.
Edit:
Wanna give a big props to Jon Kitna, though. The man took over a horrid situation and had the team playing competitively. The guy has been nothing but a professional and a gamer each week winning games with grit and emotion. It's always nice to see a guy who didn't get much love throughout his career have a nice season regardless of the circumstances around it.