When the clock hit zeroes at AT&T Stadium back in January after a terrible loss to the seventh-seeded Green Bay Packers, we were all left in a state of shock at how the Dallas Cowboys performed.
Who would have thought that 10 months later, the Cowboys would have a 4-7 record, a litany of injuries (including to QB Dak Prescott), and a premature head coaching search by all of Cowboys Nation on social media? Not me, that’s for sure.
Cowboys’ Owner/GM Jerry Jones made his weekly appearance on 105.3 The Fan, and threw us all a curveball that we weren’t expecting. When asked about a possible extension for HC Mike McCarthy, who is in his last year of a five-year deal, Jones’ response shocked us all.
I don’t think that’s crazy at all. That’s not crazy. Listen, Mike McCarthy is an outstanding coach. This is a Super Bowl-winning coach. Mike McCarthy has been there and done that. He has great ideas. Bottom line is that no place in my body language or anything else have you seen indication about what we’re going to be doing relative to this (coaching) staff at the end of this year. And we shouldn’t. We got a lot of football left.
Talk about coming out of left field. Granted, this might just be Jerry speak, and it probably is, but still, the old man does not shy away from making a statement to get the national media juices flowing. It made me think, does McCarthy actually warrant an extension?
Let’s take a look at what he has done in his nearly five years in charge of the most valuable football franchise in the world, and then you be the judge.
Success With a Ceiling
Mike McCarthy took over a Cowboys team in 2020 that experienced euphoric highs and dark lows under Jason Garrett’s tenure. No matter how you felt at the time, it was time to move on from Garrett.
McCarthy lost Dak Prescott to a gruesome injury that derailed the entire season, and if Prescott was going to get hurt, 2020 would have been the best year to do it. The defense was terrible, and widely considered one of the worst defenses in franchise history.
Prescott was well on his way to breaking NFL records for passing before going down in week 5, but it likely would not have been enough to save the losing season. Give credit to McCarthy for recognizing that his hand-picked DC Mike Nolan was not going to work out, and eventually hiring Dan Quinn.
McCarthy’s bunch then rattled off three consecutive 12-win seasons, but each one ended in playoff disappointment. Twice to the San Francisco 49ers and once to the Green Bay Packers. He also took over play-calling duties from the departed Kellen Moore and Prescott delivered an MVP-type season.
The former Packers coach has done some good things here in Dallas, but has it been enough to warrant another contract? Don’t make a decision until you read the other side of the story.
Some Things You Can’t Overlook
For as much good as McCarthy has done in Dallas, if you’re asking me to make a decision right now about the future of the Dallas Cowboys, he isn’t in the picture.
I just feel like there are some things you can’t overlook when it comes to offering him another contract. He made promises while being hired, and has made other promises throughout his time here that haven’t come to fruition. They are foundational principles instilled by the head coach.
Discipline
Nobody can deny that, despite their successes, the Cowboys have been one of the most undisciplined teams in the NFL during McCarthy’s tenure. Even if we just focus on the playoff losses, there is a laundry list of penalties, miscues, and bone-headed plays that I can name right off the top of my head.
So many false start and illegal procedure penalties. Randy Gregory tackling offensive linemen on critical 3rd downs. Blown coverages with receivers so wide open they are the only players in the television screen when they catch the ball.
Mistakes like those are made by the players, but at the end of the day, instilling discipline into the football team is one of the head coach’s biggest responsibilities.
Archaic Offense
Aside from the failures as a head coach, McCarthy has also caught some flak for how old his West Coast concepts on offense are. The NFL seems to have passed him by, and sometimes it feels like the Cowboys are the only team in the NFL that doesn’t utilize pre-snap motion.
They also feel like they blatantly refuse to change the scheme to get their best players the football on a regular basis. Lining up 11 on 11 and expecting pure talent to combat what the defense is doing to stop you is stubborn and short-sighted.
As an offensive coordinator, your job should be to make things as easy as possible for your quarterback to succeed. I know part of the problem is not having more explosive personnel, and that’s on the front office. However, it seems at times like McCarthy purposely doesn’t get creative so he can tell Jerry, “See? This offense needs more weapons.”
For a coach who claimed to “watch every snap” to get ahead on analytics, McCarthy sure is behind the ball in that regard.
McCarthy’s concepts are old. He can’t get the team over the hump in the playoffs. The basic responsibilities of a head coach aren’t being met. Signing him to a new contract would keep the franchise in the same stagnant place they have been in since 1996, and would be another terrible mistake.