Jerry Jones Gives Cryptic Quote on Mike McCarthy’s Cowboys Future.
The Dallas Cowboys have not yet given Mike McCarthy their whole trust to lead the team in 2024.
Owner Jerry Jones of the Cowboys was questioned regarding McCarthy’s future after this season after the club defeated the Washington Commanders 38-10 to earn the NFC East division title. Rather than offer a thunderous endorsement, Jones stated that “each game goes” throughout the postseason.
On Sunday, January 7, Hill wrote, “Owner Jerry Jones responded, ‘We’ll see how each game goes,’ in the playoffs when asked directly about Mike McCarthy’s Cowboys future.”
Report: Mike McCarthy’s Job With Cowboys Depends on Playoffs
The quote isn’t exactly surprising considering the report that came out just prior to the team’s game against the Commanders. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, McCarthy’s job status for the 2024 season hinges on how Dallas finishes their season in the playoffs.
“If the Cowboys play well in the postseason, McCarthy would have an excellent chance to keep his job,” Schefter wrote on Saturday, January 6. “But if they struggle and end the season with an embarrassing loss, as has happened in each of the past two years, then some say that change could come to Dallas.
Why Cowboys’ Regular Season Success Means Nothing
The report makes sense considering the Cowboys’ lack of postseason success under McCarthy’s lead. After missing out on the playoffs during his first season in Dallas in 2020, the Cowboys have made back-to-back playoff appearances. However, they’ve lost to the San Francisco 49ers in each of those years, with the first loss coming at home in the wild card round and the most recent defeat happening in the divisional round of the playoffs.
When one factors in that Dallas hasn’t advanced to a conference championship game since the 1995 season, it’s clear that it’s become a frustrating talking point for Jones.
The Cowboys’ 2023 regular season certainly ended better than anyone thought it would. Despite starting out the season 5-3 with an upset loss to the Arizona Cardinals and a humiliating loss to the Niners, 42-10, back in October, Dallas bounced back to win the NFC East after the Philadelphia Eagles started out the year 10-1.
Furthermore, the Cowboys went undefeated at home, emerging as the only team to do so this season.
With the Cowboys clinching the No. 2 seed in the playoffs, that means they’ll host at least their first two playoff games — assuming they defeated the No. 7-seeded Green Bay Packers in the opening round — at home. Dallas has outscored and dominated their opposition at home, averaging 37.4 points per game while allowing just 15.9 points per game to opponents.
The teams that they’re most likely to face in the next round — the Detroit Lions and the Eagles — are both teams that Dallas defeated this season.
Stated differently, with their home field advantage, there’s no reason the Cowboys shouldn’t at least make it to the NFC Championship Game.
That implies that the Cowboys’ postseason chances will either be conference title or bust if McCarthy is to keep his job for another season.
It’s difficult to imagine former Super Bowl champion head coach McCarthy staying on the field for a fifth season if he can’t get Dallas to the conference title game, especially in light of the possibility that Jim Harbaugh and Bill Belichick could become available.
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