Cowboys' Stephen Jones: Mike McCarthy's 'track record speaks for itself'

It's hardly a stretch to suggest that the first two years of the Mike McCarthy era for the Dallas Cowboys did not go as planned.

The 2020 Cowboys finished at a disappointing 6-10 but also lost starting quarterback Dak Prescott to a horrific compound fracture and dislocation of his right ankle in Week 5. As such, McCarthy deservedly received a pass last winter. Dallas claimed the NFC East crown at 12-5 for this past campaign but then fell to the San Francisco 49ers in a one-and-done playoff appearance that featured the Cowboys head coach signing off on a curious and controversial last-second offensive play. 

Shortly after that defeat, Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones publicly backed McCarthy, who ultimately held on to his job through January and February despite Dallas' links to Sean Payton after Payton stepped down as head coach of the New Orleans Saints in January. Per Clarence E. Hill Jr. of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Jones once again praised McCarthy as the right man to lead the Cowboys to where they want to be in comments shared Thursday. 

"I think his track record speaks for itself. He’s won a Super Bowl," Jones explained. "He’s been to championship games. I love the way his leadership style is. He’s got a great pulse for our football team and just feel like he’s the right guy for us."

McCarthy does have one Super Bowl title on his head-coaching resume, a championship the Green Bay Packers won all the way back in February 2011 when future Hall-of-Famer Aaron Rodgers earned Most Valuable Player honors for the big game. If McCarthy's Cowboys are without at least an NFC Championship appearance by next February, owner and general manager Jerry Jones may call Payton, his good buddy, to see how serious he is about remaining out of coaching at that time.