Plenty of questions have been raised surrounding Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy’s job security over the last couple of seasons.
The former Super Bowl-champion coach amassed a 49-35 record over his five years at the helm of the NFL’s most valuable franchise, including three straight 12-win seasons, two NFC East titles, and three playoff appearances. However, the Cowboys only won a singular playoff game over that span, and coming off a disappointing 7-10 finish in 2024, even more questions popped up surrounding McCarthy’s future with the team.
The answer to those questions is now apparent — the McCarthy era is officially over.
According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, McCarthy is out as the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys. However, perhaps the most interesting part of the saga is the reasoning behind the breakup. Per Pelissero’s reporting, the split isn’t due to performance, but because the two sides couldn’t reach an agreement on the length of a new contract.
It aligns closely with what other NFL insiders have been saying over the last couple of weeks, which is that the Cowboys wanted to retain McCarthy’s services. Although the Chicago Bears requested to interview him for their own vacancy at head coach, Dallas actually denied the request, too.
While franchise owner Jerry Jones and the rest of the front office may have been impressed by McCarthy keeping the team somewhat competitive after quarterback Dak Prescott’s season-ending injury, it apparently wasn’t enough to keep the two sides together in the end. Now, McCarthy becomes a free agent and is already drawing interest from both the Bears and New Orleans Saints.
Meanwhile, the now-open Cowboys job potentially throws a major wrinkle in the coaching carousel. Only the New England Patriots have made a hire thus far, which leaves six head coach positions available across the league. Other franchises have already spent a week interviewing potential candidates, so Dallas remains behind in the race for top talent — the delay could be a major misstep in the long run. However, it’s possible the Cowboys job will draw major interest since the team has many win-now pieces in place.
With that said, expect top names on the coaching market to be linked to the job in one way or another. Lions coordinators Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn appear to be at the top of many teams’ wish lists. Other names such as Todd Monken, Joe Brady, Anthony Weaver, and Brian Flores have also received interest from multiple franchises, and it wouldn’t be shocking for any of them to take an interview with the Cowboys.
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