While the on-field product might not always be perfect, the Dallas Cowboys are always a show off the field and now there’s another chapter in the Mike McCarthy coaching chronicles.
Appearing on the Rich Eisen Show, McCarthy fielded questions about his job security and everything being the head coach of the Cowboys entails. Eisen minced no words in the interview, bringing up the potential of defensive coordinator Dan Quinn taking over as head coach in the future, something owner Jerry Jones spoke of publicly.
Quinn, the 2021 NFL Assistant Coach of the Year, reached out to McCarthy during his interviews for head coaching positions after the 2021 season, asking if he should take one of the jobs to alleviate all the drama.
“We talked about him staying long before he ever took the interview. Now, obviously, when he took this interview and the narrative broke out in reflection to the narrative that Dan and I do have. He said ‘Hey man, I’m not comfortable with this narrative. If you really feel like I need to take one of these jobs, just be honest with me.’ We kind of laughed about it.”
The bitter end to the 2021 season created reasonable discussion about the Cowboys coaching staff but Quinn was the one name that kept a positive reputation through the struggles. Turning a historically bad defense into a highlight reel unit earned him head coaching conversations and keeping him in Dallas is critical for success in 2022.
“The reality is I’m about winning, he’s about winning and the best thing for the Cowboys is for Dan Quinn to be here,” McCarthy said, brightening the tone in the interview.
Quinn isn’t the only name that’s been bandied about as a McCarthy replacement. Eisen brought up the constant Sean Payton rumors and how the 2022 season will likely decide the future for McCarthy as the coach in Dallas. While Jones run the show and everything is up to him to a degree, McCarthy opened up about the spotlight on the Cowboys and how it’s more than just football.
“The way things are done here, there’s a bigger picture focus. I always just frankly keep it about winning and I’ve always just kind of taken a blind eye or blind ear to those things but that’s not the case when you work here.”
Whether it be Quinn, Payton or maybe even Kellen Moore, the head coach chatter never stops in Dallas and that appears to be something McCarthy might still be getting a grasp of. One can’t solely focusing on winning as a Cowboy, they also have to manage the spotlight created and continually fueled by Jones’ desire to be in the media’s eye. The caveat is that the winning is what makes all of the side conversation go away and is ultimately what McCarthy’s fate as the Dallas head coach will depend on.
No one every said it was easy coaching the Cowboys and McCarthy’s comments speak to the culture that has been created with the Joneses and how winning only matters so much in Dallas.
[lawrence-newsletter]