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MIke McCarthy
After driving to the Dallas Cowboys At 12-5, it’s hard to imagine head coach McCarthy on the bench. However, there was a lot of hype that the Cowboys might fire McCarthy if the team lost to the 49ers in the wild-card round, which ultimately happened.
Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reported that owner Jerry Jones thinks so highly of offensive coordinator Kellen Moore that he might consider promoting him to head coach if the Cowboys have a disappointing playoff run. Moore has been a popular candidate for head coaching vacancies in the NFL, and the source believes the only way for Jones to retain the assistant might be to offer him the job with the Cowboys.
“Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones may consider a coaching change if the team doesn’t meet expectations this season, league sources contend, with both assistants to head coach Mike McCarthy drawing strong interest for the coaching job. main by other teams”, detailed La Canfora on January 15. “Several sources who know Jones well indicated that a loss in the wild card round could give Jones the opportunity to at least consider running the team as coordinators Dan Quinn and Kellen Moore prepare for numerous head coaching interviews.”
“Jones has always been a staunch supporter of Moore and believed from the start in the young coach’s ability to shape the offense, work with quarterbacks and call plays. Dak Prescott has done his best work with Moore in charge and Jones is very comfortable with the coordinator’s demeanor and progress, seeing him internally as a head coach as well. Losing Moore would be viewed by Jones’s family as a significant departure, and while McCarthy has won a Lombardi Trophy, he took the job knowing Jones wanted to keep Moore as coordinator. McCarthy’s two years have also had many ups and downs.”
Moore would be the Cowboys’ first choice if the team fired McCarthy
La Canfora cited sources suggesting the Cowboys could make Moore their next head coach “earlier than expected.” This would be an unexpected twist given that McCarthy has only had two seasons with the team. La Canfora detailed some of his talks with NFL sources and revealed the reason for the speculation about Moore’s future.
“If this season doesn’t end the way Jerry thinks it should, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Kellen Moore became his next head coach sooner than expected,” said a source who knows Jones well. “He doesn’t want to lose it.”
… Another source close to the owner added: “It’s not like there’s no precedent for something like this. Remember what they did to keep Jason Garrett. It wouldn’t be improper at all.”
Source close to the Cowboys shot down speculation that McCarthy could lose his job
This is all pure speculation given that the Cowboys are one of the top contenders to win the NFC heading into the postseason. These reports might seem ridiculous if the Cowboys have a good playoff campaign.
As for the Cowboys’ history of such bold actions, Jones got Garrett to turn down the Ravens’ head coaching job in 2008, keeping him as the team’s offensive coordinator. Clearly Dallas promised Garrett that he would eventually become the Cowboys’ head coach. The team fired Wade Phillips in 2010 and promoted Garrett to the position of head coach.
Not everyone believes McCarthy’s job is in jeopardy heading into the 2022 season. Sports Illustrated’s Mike Fisher shot down reports that McCarthy’s job is in jeopardy as “when cows fly.”
“#JerryJones ABSOLUTELY HAS NOT ‘talked to multiple people’ about his devious secret plan to fire Coach McCarthy,” Fisher tweeted January 15. “As I’ve pointed out, there are ‘when cows fly’ scenarios for #Cowboys.”
Regardless of McCarthy’s status, the Cowboys’ coaching staff is likely to look different in 2022. Moore and defensive coordinator Dan Quinn are generating interest for the head coaching job across the NFL. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported that Quinn has “emerged as the favorite” to become the Broncos’ next head coach.
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