Cowboys to keep coach Mike McCarthy, 'very close' to title, owner says

Jan. 18 (UPI) -- Jerry Jones will bring back Mike McCarthy as head coach in 2024, amid rumors he would be fired, and believes the Dallas Cowboys are "very close and capable" of winning a Super Bowl, the longtime team owner said.

Jones released a statement about the decision through the team Wednesday night, three days after the Cowboys' season ended with a 48-32 loss to the Green Bay Packers in Arlington, Texas.

"I believe this team is very close and capable of achieving our ultimate goals and the best step forward for us will be with Mike McCarthy as our head coach," Jones said. "There is great benefit to continuing the team's progress under Mike's leadership as our head coach."

McCarthy, 60, owns a 42-25 (62.7%) regular-season record and 1-3 playoff mark over four seasons with the Cowboys. He went 125-77-2 (61.8%) in the regular season and 10-8 in the playoffs over 13 seasons with the Green Bay Packers before landing in Dallas.

"There are many layers of success that have occurred this season as a result of Mike's approach to leading the team, both with individual players and with our team collectively," Jones said. "Mike has the highest regular-season winning percentage of any head coach in Cowboys history and we will dedicate ourselves, in partnership with him, to translating that into reaching our postseason goals."

Jones cited McCarthy's previous playoff success with the Packers, who he led to a Super Bowl title in 2011. He led the Packers to four conference title games.

Jones hired McCarthy in 2020. They fired former coach Jason Garrett a day earlier. Garrett coached the Cowboys for 10 seasons. He went 85-67 in the regular season and 2-3 in the playoffs. Neither coach advanced past the divisional round.

"Our loss on Sunday is shared by everyone here, not just coach McCarthy," Jones said. "Our players. Our coaches. Our front office. Myself. There is accountability for our results. I am accountable for our results.

"The lens we use to view and evaluate coach McCarthy is holistic. While we're all disappointed with the result on Sunday and with our playoff record, I am 100% supportive of him as our head coach and ability to reach our goals."

Jones said that the Cowboys will now start their process to review their roster, including free agents. Left tackle Tyron Smith, running back Tony Pollard and cornerback Stephon Gilmore are among more than a dozen players from the 2023 roster headed to free agency.

The Cowboys also own the No. 24 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.