Mike McCarthy to return as Cowboys coach after stunning wildcard loss
Mike McCarthy will get another chance to end a stretch of nearly three decades without a deep playoff run for the Dallas Cowboys, a decision that ends three days of intense speculation about the coach’s future.
Owner and general manager Jerry Jones said Wednesday night that McCarthy will be back for a fifth season after a stunning 48-32 wild-card loss to Green Bay.
The Cowboys were the first No. 2 seed to lose to the last team coming in since the 14-team format was adopted in 2020. Dallas climbed to the NFC East title in the final two weeks and had a chance to host at least two playoffs. games.
Instead, McCarthy’s team is the first not to reach a conference title game after three consecutive 12-win playoff seasons.
“There is great upside in continuing the team’s progress under Mike’s leadership as our head coach,” Jones said in a statement in which he referenced the disappointment of the playoff loss several times. “Mike has the highest regular-season winning percentage of any head coach in Cowboys history, and we will be committed, working with him, to translating that into achieving our postseason goals.”
McCarthy was hired to help get Dallas past the divisional round for the first time since the 1995 season, the last of the storied franchise’s five Super Bowl titles.
The 60-year-old coach won a Super Bowl with Green Bay 13 years ago and reached the NFC championship game three times in more than a dozen seasons leading the Packers.
McCarthy was fired midway through a second consecutive losing season in Green Bay in 2018. He retired from football in 2019 before Jones hired him. He is 167-102-2 overall and 42-25 with Dallas.
McCarthy has one year left on his contract. Jones’ statement made no mention of an extension.
Quarterback Dak Prescott, who also has one year left on his four-year, $160 million contract, played poorly in the first half as Dallas trailed 27-0. A top-five defensive unit never slowed the Packers in quarterback Jordan Love’s playoff debut.
Dallas allowed the most points in franchise postseason history while falling to 1-3 in the playoffs under McCarthy. Prescott is 2-5 in the playoffs.
“We will begin our process of review and decision-making regarding anything that impacts our team and our roster,” Jones said. “While we will not be targeting specific players, extensions or free agents at this time, it deserves and will receive our deepest review and consideration.”
Two of the Cowboys’ three playoff losses under McCarthy were the playoff openers at home, where Dallas won 16 straight regular-season games before the loss to Green Bay.
Both times, Dallas was the only team to lose at home during wild-card weekend. San Francisco won at AT&T Stadium to end the Cowboys’ 2021 season.
One factor working in McCarthy’s favor was that he had just completed his first season as a play-caller for Prescott, who led the NFL with 36 touchdown passes and completed a career-best 69.5% of his passes.
Jones had high praise for his coach and quarterback during the season and might want to see how the new dynamic of that relationship could grow.
“Our loss on Sunday is shared by everyone here, not just coach McCarthy. Our players. Our coaches. Our front office. Myself,” Jones said. “The lens we use to view and evaluate Coach McCarthy is holistic. While we are all disappointed with Sunday’s result and our playoff record, I support him 100% as our head coach and his ability to achieve our goals.”
The Cowboys may lose defensive coordinator Dan Quinn to a head coaching job. The former Atlanta coach has been in charge of Dallas’ defense for three seasons, but the performance against the Packers was perhaps the unit’s worst since Quinn took over.