Tag: Mike McCarthy

Cowboys’ defense never stood a chance against Matt LaFleur, Jordan Love, and Aaron Jones

The Dallas Cowboys had no chance against the Green Bay Packers, and that story was told before the two teams even hit the field.

We’re sure that Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones will want to investigate how and why his high-priced, Mike McCarthy-led offense made the Green Bay Packers’ defense, led by embattled defensive coordinator Joe Barry, look like the ’85 Chicago Bears when it mattered in Dallas’ humiliating 48-32 wild-card loss. But the real issue causing Dallas’ early exit from the postseason was that the Cowboys’ defense, led by highly-regarded coordinator Dan Quinn, never had a puncher’s chance against Packers head coach Matt LaFleur’s offense.

Coming into this game, the Cowboys had played the third-highest rate of man coverage (39.4%), behind only the New England Patriots and the New York Giants. And against man coverage in the regular season, Packers quarterback Jordan Love had completed 61 of 128 attempts for 788 yards, 581 air yards, a league-high 12 touchdowns, two interceptions, and a passer rating of 92.2. Also, the Cowboys played the second-highest rate of single-high coverage in the regular season (64.9%), behind only the Cleveland Browns (65.4%). And against single-high coverage this season, Love has completed 100 of 155 passes for 1,253 yards, 776 air yards, eight touchdowns, one interception, and a passer rating of 104.0.

So, the Cowboys tried to play a bit more zone against the Packers, to little avail, but this was a clear case of a miserable matchup in which Dallas’ opposing quarterback was ready to demolish everything the Cowboys threw at him. And at that point, it mattered little that the Cowboys came into this game with the fifth-best Defensive DVOA.

The absolute nadir of Dallas’ defensive approach in this beatdown was Love’s 38-yard touchdown with 1:27 left in the third quarter. The game was already 34-16 in Green Bay’s favor, and though the Cowboys did their best to come back against the Packers’ backups, that was pretty much it.

As we always like to say here at Touchdown Wire, don’t play man if you can’t play man.

The second part of Dallas’ defensive breakdown was what running back Aaron Jones was able to do to them, and this was even more predictable. The Cowboys under Quinn feature a ton of big nickel and dime defense, which means that the guys up front, generally in four-man fronts, had best be able to hold up. That hasn’t happened with consistency since defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins suffered a high ankle sprain in Week 14 against the Philadelphia Eagles. Hankins was back on the field for this game, but it didn’t matter, and it didn’t matter because Jones had been among the NFL’s best running backs in the last few weeks of the regular season.

Well, Jones finished this game with 119 carries and three touchdowns on 21 carries.

Similarly to the Browns’ inability to adjust to the things about their defense that C.J. Stroud was obviously set up to tear apart, the Cowboys had no answers for the Packers, because the Packers were designed as if to specifically demolish everything Dan Quinn loves.

Browns’ refusal to adapt on defense cost them dearly against C.J. Stroud

At a certain point, you just have to tip your hat and move on to next season.

Commanders’ Twitter reacts to Cowboys’ playoff loss to Packers

The Packers blew out the Cowboys in Sunday’s NFC wild-card round. How did Twitter react?

The Green Bay Packers embarrassed the Dallas Cowboys 48-32 in Sunday’s NFC wild-card round to send the second-seeded Cowboys home early. It was Dallas’ first home loss of the season.

The loss had social media buzzing about the future of head coach Mike McCarthy. While McCarthy is 67-42 with two NFC East championships in four seasons as head coach of the Cowboys, he’s also 1-3 in the playoffs. And, well, you never know with owner Jerry Jones.

Meanwhile, fans of the Washington Commanders were certainly enjoying Sunday’s festivities at Jerry World. Not only did the Cowboys sweep the 4-13 Commanders in the 2023 regular season, but it was the 45-10 loss to Dallas on Thanksgiving Day that fans remember the most.

After the Cowboys blew the game open in the fourth quarter, quarterback Dak Prescott and others were seen on the sideline eating turkey legs. Washington fans were more upset than the players, who didn’t seem to take care all that much that they were thoroughly embarrassed.

On Sunday, Commanders’ Twitter was enjoying the moment.

Here are some of the best reactions from fans, media and more.

Dak Prescott tied himself to Mike McCarthy’s Cowboys fate with an unwarranted endorsement

Dak Prescott wants to go down with Mike McCarthy’s sinking ship.

The Cowboys have won 36 regular-season games under Mike McCarthy. They’ve won just one playoff game. When factoring in Jerry Jones’ obvious disappointment with that fact, it seems apparent that McCarthy might not be the head coach in Dallas for much longer.

And that is something that doesn’t sit well with Dak Prescott.

Prescott discussed his head coach’s future as the Cowboys picked up the pieces from an embarrassing Wild Card loss to the Green Bay Packers. He went as far as to say that his job as Cowboys quarterback should also be on the hot seat if McCarthy’s is in danger.

Oh, buddy. I wouldn’t willingly tie myself to the Titanic if I were you:

What Prescott says about McCarthy’s individual coaching of his play is probably true. While Prescott’s always been a good quarterback, in 2023, he was great, at one point even dominating the MVP conversation. That likely never happens without McCarthy designing a tailor-made offense for his skill set.

But the playoff failures are impossible to ignore. If the Cowboys aren’t outright choking a win away, Sunday showed that they might not show up altogether, either. It doesn’t matter what McCarthy did for Prescott. Such a reality is unsustainable. Prescott has one year left on a monster contract and seems due for a massive extension from the Cowboys this off-season.

The veteran quarterback would do well to toe the company line and realize he can probably produce such gaudy numbers — with more success in January — with another head coach.

A dejected Jerry Jones was at a loss for words after the Cowboys’ playoff no-show against the Packers

Jerry Jones is VERY mad about the Cowboys. Watch out, Mike McCarthy.

Aside from tortured Dallas Cowboys fans, no one has likely felt the team’s perennial playoff disappointment more than owner Jerry Jones. It is Jones who has seemingly pulled out all the stops to turn Dallas back into a marquee team with a roster worthy of contending for the Super Bowl.

Yet again, all he has to show for it is a 48-32 playoff loss to the Green Bay Packers that was never all that close.

After Sunday’s defeat, Jones spoke to the gathered press contingent. Actually, scratch that. Because he was so rattled, Jones could only describe the Cowboys’ latest failure as “painful” and “beyond comprehension.” He couldn’t even discuss Mike McCarthy’s potentially shaky future as the head coach in Dallas. (He’s probably already made his decision about McCarthy, anyway.)

Phew.

If a team owner looks and sounds beyond depressed about one playoff loss, you can bet your bottom dollar a lot of upheaval is on the horizon. And Jones, much more than most NFL owners, should be expected to deliver on such a notion.

Why this loss might be it for Mike McCarthy as Cowboys head coach

Our @ReidDHanson checks in with a sobering evaluation of what McCarthy has brought to the table, and whether it’s enough to invite him back for Year 5.

Three consecutive 12-win seasons. That was the reflexive response when the job security of Mike McCarthy was publicly questioned this past week. In today’s up-and-down NFL, the Cowboys have been the epitome of consistency during the McCarthy era. Aside from Dak Prescott’s missing season, the Cowboys have been perennial contenders; Something they hadn’t been since the Super Bowl teams of the 1990s.

Yet McCarthy’s limited postseason success as the Cowboys head coach has kept the topic alive and his seat uncomfortably hot. McCarthy’s Cowboys have now gone 1-3 in postseason games as a 12-win team following Sunday’s 48-32 debacle. They’ve been upset, bullied and embarrassed. Aside from one big win over an 8-9 Buccaneers team in 2022, Dallas has consistently disappointed in the postseason. Hence the hot seat.

The Cowboys should fire Mike McCarthy for wasting Dallas’ best Super Bowl shot in 3 decades

It’s time for the Cowboys to give up on Mike McCarthy.

Nothing about the Dallas Cowboys’ performance on Sunday was easy on the eyes.

Before they could blink, the Green Bay Packers — with a first-year starting quarterback, mind you — jumped on the NFC’s No. 2 seed with a 27-0 lead. Whenever it seemed like the Cowboys might make matters interesting, Green Bay returned with a resounding haymaker, eventually driving Dallas’ own fans to leave a postseason game with over 16 minutes (!) left. In hindsight, it is so poetic that the Cowboys became the first NFL team to lose to a No. 7 seed since the league expanded the playoff format in 2020. Of course it would be pro football’s premier punching bags suffering that kind of loss first. Of course they’d do it in a humiliating fashion.

If you were surprised by the Cowboys’ ineptitude in a 48-32 loss, I’d urge you to change your tone. That final score is not nearly indicative of the Packers’ butt-whooping of their long-time NFC rival. This is par for the course for McCarthy’s Cowboys. Build lofty (but reasonable!) expectations, and lay a giant egg as soon as every game is sudden death.

And that is precisely why if the Cowboys aspire to end their 28-year Super Bowl drought, McCarthy can no longer be their head coach.

Since Mike McCarthy took over, the Cowboys have won 36 regular-season games in the last three years. They’ve captured two NFC East titles. They’ve developed blue-chip talents like Micah Parsons, CeeDee Lamb, and even Tyler Smith. For all intents and purposes, they have resembled a Super Bowl contender. On paper, this team has all the horses to win three or four consecutive games in the winter and eventually hoist a Lombardi Trophy in February. There is no debate. Many NFL coaches would likely kill to coach this kind of stacked roster.

Despite this reality, this iteration of the Cowboys owns just one playoff win over a washed-up Tom Brady. They have zero appearances on Championship Sunday, a blemish that long predates McCarthy, but, appropriately, hasn’t ended under his shaky watch.

Dearest readers, welcome to the McCarthy Experience.

McCarthy does deserve credit for changing up his postseason script. Usually, Cowboys playoff disappointments at least go down to the wire. It is there where McCarthy costs his team with questionable time management and play-calling. I would run out of fingers if I tried to count every instance McCarthy broke out into a flop sweat when he had to make a critical decision in a playoff game. He has a notorious but well-deserved reputation for self-combusting as soon as his players and coaches need him to be a leader.

He is a living, breathing meme of a coach.

But the Cowboys didn’t even bother letting McCarthy blow it on Sunday. An early 14-0 deficit felt insurmountable. The Cowboys’ body language on the sideline made it seem like they were already defeated. The audible frustration of their home stadium made it feel like fans knew a decisive knockout to the mat was inevitable. Because it was. This whole afternoon reeked of an organization being rattled by the slightest hint of adversity — the last trait you want when trying to capture that elusive Super Bowl championship.

That falls on McCarthy’s shoulders, too.

If a football team is a reflection of its head coach, then these Cowboys have captured McCarthy’s fragile essence perfectly. They are frontrunners who love beating up on bottom feeders and wilting under the bright spotlight. They take one punch to the mouth and drop to their knees to beg for mercy. The next big play a Cowboys player makes with the game on the line in mid-January will be the first in a long time. No one — and I mean no one — knows how to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory quite like McCarthy’s Cowboys.

These Cowboys are McCarthy’s team — a bumbling loser propped up by one magical Aaron Rodgers playoff run roughly 13 years ago — through and through. If the reports are true, McCarthy’s final evaluation of his job did not go swimmingly:

Firing McCarthy now is a necessity. The Cowboys are not an over-the-hill squad. They have the pieces to make a run and shift their narrative as early as next season. With the right coach in tow, this organization might stop being the butt of the joke for the rest of the football world every year.

That’s what could make Sunday’s humiliation a blessing.

The Packers might have saved the Cowboys from themselves. They might have put a merciful end to the McCarthy era that was clearly never going anywhere.

Eagles fans rejoice after Cowboys 48-32 loss to Packers in wild card round

Philadelphia Eagles fans were excited after the Dallas Cowboys embarrassing playoff loss to the Green Bay Packers on Wild Card Weekend

Eagles fans have had to endure a 1-5 finish down the stretch, and Nick Sirianni’s team is imploding despite being one of the first teams to secure a postseason berth.

Philadelphia (11-6), traveled to Tampa for a Monday night matchup against the NFC South Champion, Buccaneers (9-8) at Raymond James Stadium.

The Eagles can host a divisional round game after the Packers’ 48-32 upset win over the Cowboys at AT&T Stadium.

Social media reacts to everything, and the Dallas loss had Philly fans pumped and heading into a cold Monday morning.

Jimmy Johnson goes off on Cowboys from Fox Sports’ home office

Former Dallas Cowboys head coach JImmy Johnson had an inspiring message for his downtrodden franchise. Jerry Jones might want to hire him again.

Outside of Tom Landry, Jimmy Johnson was the Dallas Cowboys’ best head coach, and there’s little question about that. Johnson took over in 1989 after new team owner Jerry Jones fired Landry, an unthinkable move after Landry’s 29-year stretch as the franchise’s only head coach. But Johnson, armed with all the recruiting information he’d gleaned as Miami’s head coach, completely redefined Dallas’ personnel at a point when it needed a clean sweep, Johnson won two Super Bowls in just five seasons as the Cowboys’ head coach, and you could say that he won three, because the Cowboys who beat the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XXX at the end of the 1995 season was Johnson’s team with Barry Switzer as the placeholder.

Well, Johnson’s old team found itself on the wrong end of quite the debacle with a 27-7 deficit against the Green Bay Packers at the end of the first half in the wild-card round, and Johnson — in his current role as a FOX Sports analyst — did his best to radar in his thoughts as to what the current Cowboys should do to get back in the game.

Frankly, I’d pay more attention to this than anything current Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy had to say at this point. And at this point, Jerry Jones might want to see if he can get Johnson on a place from Los Angeles to Arlington, Texas.

The Cowboys’ lifeless first half against the Packers had NFL fans making so many Bill Belichick jokes

Would Bill Belichick really work for Jerry Jones? It feels VERY possible now.

Even after parting ways with the New England Patriots, Bill Belichick apparently still wants to coach in the NFL. And when taking Sunday’s early Wild Card Game results into account, his next gig very well might come with the Dallas Cowboys.

The Cowboys entered their opening postseason matchup with the Green Bay Packers as the NFC’s No. 2 seed. They had legitimate Super Bowl aspirations, with Mike McCarthy looking to bury his demons with his old team. Instead, Dallas fell behind 27-7 at halftime, with the Cowboys looking lifeless for the better part of 30 minutes. No wonder Jimmy Johnson was so openly upset.

Even a 14-0 deficit seemed like it hit the Cowboys like a Mack Truck.

When combining such poor body language with a terrible performance, NFL fans connected the dots. It was time for owner Jerry Jones to make the call to Belichick. Of course, halfway through a playoff game, these were only jokes. But I can’t think of a better opportunity for Belichick to coach a possible contender than with the Cowboys’ talented roster.

Should the Cowboys’ humiliation indeed be cemented, don’t discount Belichick calling Dallas home soon enough.

NFL insider says Cowboys DC Dan Quinn is a ‘name to watch’ for Commanders’ head coach

Dan Quinn is reportedly a strong contender to be Washington’s head coach.

The Washington Commanders have requested permission to interview at least seven assistant coaches for their vacant head coaching position. The list could grow after the Commanders hired former 49ers assistant GM Adam Peters as their new general manager.

The only name known to have interviewed with Washington thus far is Ravens associate head coach/defensive line coach Anthony Weaver. The Commanders also requested permission to interview Baltimore defensive coordinator Mike MacDonald, but it isn’t known if that meeting has occurred yet.

Washington spoke with Weaver last week because the Ravens are on a bye for this week’s wild-card round of the playoffs. The Commanders can speak to the rest of the candidates after the wild-card round this week.

One of the coaches Washington requested permission to interview is Dallas defensive coordinator Dan Quinn. Quinn, 53, made his name as a defensive line coach for multiple teams before ascending to the role of defensive coordinator of the Seattle Seahawks in 2013. After helping lead the Seahawks to a Super Bowl championship, Quinn took a head coaching position with the Atlanta Falcons.

In five-plus seasons as head coach of the Falcons, Quinn finished with a record of 43-42 before he was fired in 2020. He did guide Atlanta to a Super Bowl appearance in 2016 before the Falcons blew the largest lead in Super Bowl history and lost to the Patriots.

In 2021, Quinn became the Cowboys defensive coordinator. His defenses have been outstanding, and after each season, he’s received requests to interview for other head coaching opportunities. He’s chosen to remain in Dallas.

Will that change this time around?

According to Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network, Quinn is a serious contender for Washington’s head coaching vacancy. While Pelissero noted that Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson is believed to be atop Peters’ wish list, Quinn “is another name to watch in Washington.”

Pelissero said that Quinn’s previous head coaching experience could be valuable coming to a place where there is a first-time GM.

Could Washington hire away Mike McCarthy’s most valuable assistant? Quinn has completely transformed the Cowboys defense since arriving in 2021. Dallas is always among the league leaders in forced turnovers and sacks — areas in which Washington has struggled recently.

If the Commanders hired Quinn, the key would be who he would hire as offensive coordinator. Washington is expected to take a quarterback at No. 2 overall in the 2024 NFL draft, and that QB’s development will be a priority for the franchise.