Troy Aikman addresses Cowboys keeping Mike McCarthy as head coach

At a Tuesday event, Hall of Fame quarterback Troy Aikman, a legend of the Dallas Cowboys,

discussed a range of topics, including Jerry Jones, the team’s general manager,

retaining Mike McCarthy as head coach despite McCarthy’s 3–1 postseason record with the team.

“If you make a (head coaching) change, then you’re basically making a change for the same reason you made changes back

a few years ago when you brought Mike in and you’re bringing in then somebody who you believe is

going to get you over the top,

” Aikman explained, as shared by Jon Machota of The Athletic. “Just like they felt Mike is that guy to do it.

But you don’t know the answer to that until, once again, you get back to January.”

Aikman went on to say that although Dallas starting signal-caller Dak Prescott is currently 2-5 in his seven career

playoff starts, it makes “the most sense” for both McCarthy and Prescott to return for another season.

On Wednesday, Todd Archer of ESPN noted both McCarthy and Prescott are expected to have expiring contracts at the

end of the 2024 season.

Last week, it was revealed that Bill Belichick, the former coach of the New England Patriots, was the target of

someone on the Cowboys who “expressed interest” before Belichick “didn’t reciprocate.”

Aikman, meantime, asserted on Tuesday that despite the Cowboys’ 48-32 loss to the Green Bay Packers in a home wild-card

playoff game on January 14, they had “a really good year” as the club that won the NFC East division title with a 12-5 record.

“…The way that they were playing at the end of the year, they positioned themselves to be the No. 2 seed,

” Aikman said about the 2023 Cowboys. “I thought it was good.”

Although Aikman’s endorsement is commendable, it’s generally believed that Jones will not put up with McCarthy playing in

the playoffs just once again in January of next year.

McCarthy’s job could be in jeopardy if the Cowboys fail to make it to the NFC Championship Game in 2025.