While most of the football world gravitated toward Jerry Jones’ comments Tuesday aimed at 105.3 The Fan (KRLD-FM)’s show hosts, the Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager did slip in some more support for Mike McCarthy.
When the subject was broached again during his weekly interview if the organization would consider a coaching change during the season following another lackluster showing at home against the Detroit Lions, Jones doubled down on his commitment to keeping McCarthy around for the duration of the 2024 season.
“I won’t be making any others [coaching changes] during the season,” Jones said.
Jones has fired a head coach in the middle of a season before. He let Wade Phillips go eight games deep into the 2010 season, 10 months removed from a division title but with a dismal record of 1-7 the following year.
That’s the only occurrence of a firing of the man in charge on the sideline in Jones’ three-plus decades of ownership.
“They usually are ineffective,” Jones said of in-season NFL coaching changes. “At that particular time [with Phillips], I did think it was the thing to do. I think it did produce a positive effect, but we’ll never know. All Wade did was move over to Denver — he didn’t become the head coach, he became the defensive coordinator — and that was one of the few times in my 35 years in the NFL that I heard throughout the league that the one coach was responsible for them having the team, and that was Wade Phillips running the defense for Denver when they won the Super Bowl.
“Now that was the coach I’d let go out of here just a few years earlier. So, so much for knee jerking on 1-7.”
McCarthy, meanwhile, has led the Cowboys to at least 12 wins in each of the past three seasons, mixed with minimal success in the playoffs. He entered this season in the final year of his current contract, which has helped keep the lingering flame of questions about his job status alive.
Jones made his latest attempt to put those out for good on Tuesday.
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