Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones will start searching for his ninth head coach in his 36-year tenure amid his announcement on Monday of parting ways with head coach Mike McCarthy.
McCarthy has been the head coach since 2020 with a 49–35 record but only one playoff win in four postseason games. This season’s Cowboys stumbled to 7–10 amid injuries and missed the playoffs. The Epoch Times attempted to reach McCarthy’s agent, Donald Yee, regarding the mutual nature of the decision, but received no comment.
“Throughout Mike McCarthy’s tenure here, including the last several weeks, I have been very complimentary of the job he has done. That has applied to our record over that time period, our team unity and culture, Mike’s qualifications and track record of success, and on a personal level as a tremendous human being,” Jones said in his statement. “I have great respect for Mike, and he has led the team through some very unique and challenging times during his tenure.
“Over the past week, Mike and I had the opportunity to conduct a joint review of all aspects of the past season, our players and staff, and also spent considerable time discussing the road forward for the team. These discussions were thorough and received an appropriate amount of time and depth to cover. Prior to reaching the point of contract negotiations, though, it became mutually clear that it would be better for each of us to head in a different direction. I thank Mike and wish him, his wife Jessica, and their family the best. They have been a wonderful part of our community here.
“We will commence a search process immediately to hire the next head coach of the Dallas Cowboys.”
The owner since 1989, Jones first hired Jimmy Johnson, who led the Cowboys to two Super Bowl wins in the 1992 and 1993 seasons. Barry Switzer took over in 1994 and won a Super Bowl for the 1995 season, but the Cowboys haven’t won a Super Bowl since then, with just five playoff wins since 1996.
After Switzer’s three-year stint, Chan Gailey coached the Cowboys in 1998 and 1999 with two playoff appearances. He was followed by Dave Campo from 2000 to 2002 amid a losing record. After that, Bill Parcells, Wade Phillips, and Jason Garett all coached the Cowboys during the 2000s and 2010s with mixed results. The Cowboys made the playoffs under all three coaches and won NFC East titles under Phillips and Garett.
McCarthy had a successful coaching career before the Cowboys, spending 13 years at the helm of the Green Bay Packers from 2006 to 2018. In Green Bay, he had a 125–77–2 record and one Super Bowl win.
