FRISCO, Texas -- The National Football League at large is a "what have you done for me lately?" type of business, especially for its coaches.
Even though Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy helped guide America's Team to three consecutive 12-win seasons from 2021 to 2023, owner and general manager Jerry Jones decided to turn up the heat on McCarthy and his staff in 2024. The decision to have them coach out the final year of their five-year coaching contracts came after Dallas' 48-32 faceplant against the Green Bay Packers in the NFC wild-card round last January. Jones said, "We all have Green Bay on our mind," after the Cowboys' 2024 preseason finale when asked why McCarthy's expiring contract hadn't yet been addressed. Jones also said that "angst, pressure, competing" will bring out the best from his coaches and players.
However, Jones changed his tune for the better regarding McCarthy's future in Dallas on Tuesday following the Cowboys' 34-26 upset win over the Washington Commanders that ran their record to 4-7 and snapped a five-game losing streak.
"I don't think that's crazy at all," Jones said on 105.3 The Fan when asked about possibly re-signing McCarthy for 2025 and beyond, via The Athletic. "This is a Super Bowl-winning coach. Mike McCarthy has been there and done that. He has great ideas. We got a lot of football left."
McCarthy claimed Tuesday afternoon that he hasn't consciously thought about his contract status, but he's open to positive speculation and/or vibes about his future.
"I really haven't talked about all year and I'm definitely not going to start on a short week on an important division game," McCarthy said Tuesday. "I'm not going to throw away positive vibes, either. Keep them coming, its all good. That's not something I'm really focused on."
To be fair to McCarthy, much of what has transpired has been the result of injury woes or poor depth after an inactive free agency period. Quarterback Dak Prescott is out for the year with a hamstring injury, four-time Pro Bowl defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence has been out since Week 4, cornerback DaRon Bland made his 2024 season debut in Week 12 after suffering a foot stress fracture, and three-time All-Pro Micah Parsons missed an extended stretch with a high ankle strain, just to name a few injuries.
"As a staff, this is very challenging," McCarthy said. "As we've talked as a staff, we'll be better coaches because of this experience. I believe that. I've experienced it in the past. That's what this league's about. It's not about players getting injured. It's really when and who, the timing of it, getting the young guys ready to play as fast as possible. You have different levels of that each and every year. If you're going to coach in this league, you have to be able to coach through these times. I know all of us will be better for this experience."
