Stephen Jones says Mike McCarthy will be back as Dallas Cowboys coach in 2021
The Dallas Cowboys never expected to struggle as they have in 2020 in Mike McCarthy’s first season as head coach.
That’s not what anyone signed up for when Jason Garrett was fired after the 2019 season and McCarthy was hired to take over a team that returned the league’s top-ranked offense.
Although they still have a long-shot chance of making the playoffs due to the mess that is the NFC East, their 4-9 records makes them a better bet to get a top five pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
They are currently tied with Carolina and Atlanta for the worst record in NFC and the fourth worst record in the NFL.
Injuries — including the loss of quarterback Dak Prescott and the team’s three best offensive linemen in Zack Martin, Tyron Smith and La’el Collins — as well as the COVID-19 pandemic, which prevented McCarthy implementing his new schemes in the off season, are to blame.
Yet, other new coaches have dealt with similar issues and are thriving — namely, Ron Rivera and his NFC East-leading Washington Football Team, which is 6-7 and riding a four-game winning streak, despite playing three different quarterbacks.
But if you have any questions about McCarthy’s future in Dallas and whether he will be back in 2021, vice president Stephen Jones put them to rest on his radio show on 103.5 The Fan on Monday.
McCarthy will not be one-and-done as Cowboys coach.
“There will be absolutely no change with Coach McCarthy,” Jones said. “And I am surprised that someone would question Mike, the unprecedented situation that everybody’s been in.”
Jones pointed to the injuries and the pandemic.
But he also pointed to McCarthy’s history eight straight trips to playoffs and a Super Bowl title during a 13-year tenure with the Green Bay Packers.
“If you look at his track record and his pedigree, he’s consistently won, year in and year out. We have the utmost confidence that this ship is going to be righted quickly. Mike is going to be the leader of this group. He’s certainly a great head coach.”
If truth be told, McCarthy started slow in Green Bay as well, going 4-8 in 2006 before winning his final four games to finish 8-8.
He led the Packers to a 13-3 record and a trip to the NFC Championship Game in 2007. The 2010 season ended with a Super Bowl title.
McCarthy is hoping to build momentum for future success in Dallas with a strong finish in 2020.
The Cowboys’ 30-7 defeat of the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday was the most team’s most complete performance of the season, and so that’s a good start.
Now, the Cowboys must finish strong over the final three games, beginning Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers when they hope to win back-to-back games for the first time all season.
“I thought that it was one of the foundation blocks for my time in Green Bay, those last four wins because it was something that we built on, talked about and emphasized throughout the whole off season,” McCarthy said of his first season in Green Bay. “Then in ‘07, we were an overtime loss away from being in the Super Bowl. So, I definitely do believe that success at the end of the season catapults you into your off season program and can very well factor into next year.
“So, to accomplish [finishing 4-0], would say a lot about our football team especially what we’ve gone through.”
This story was originally published December 14, 2020 at 1:26 PM.
