Should the Dallas Cowboys fire Mike McCarthy?

Following their 23-17 wild-card loss to the San Francisco 49ers, the Cowboys have a serious question ahead of them: should they fire head coach Mike McCarthy?

McCarthy inherited the Dallas Cowboys in 2020 after they fired former head-coach Jason Garrett following a lackluster 8-8 season. McCarthy possessed many skilled players such as Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliott, Amari Cooper, DeMarcus Lawrence, Leighton Vander Esch, and many other vital pieces to the team they now have.

In his first season with the team, McCarthy and Dallas went 6-10 — not the best, but not the worst in the coach’s first season with the franchise. Although they underperformed, Dallas had the pieces to make a run, at the very least, as a wild-card team. They fell short.

Heading into the 2021-2022 season, the Cowboys had high expectations. Dallas and quarterback Dak Prescott agreed to a four-year $160 million contract before the season started for him to be their franchise quarterback for the next four seasons. The signing was huge because Prescott injured his foot the season before when he fractured it against the Giants in Week 5. The contract extension showed that Dallas believed he was their guy.

With the emergence of defensive players such as Trevon Diggs, DeMarcus Lawrence and Randy Gregory among others, Dallas decided to bulk up on defense in the draft. They selected hybrid linebacker Micah Parsons out of Penn State with the No. 11 overall pick to help bolster their defense as the unit had been shaky a few seasons ago. Dallas also added defensive free agents such as Keanu Neal, Damontae Kazee, Jayron Kearse and Brent Urban.

In McCarthy’s second season as head coach, the Cowboys performed to their regular-season expectations. Dallas finished 12-5 on the season while winning the NFC East, securing a playoff spot for the first time since 2018. Their season ended this past weekend with a disappointing 23-17 wild-card loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

The way the game ended certainly raised some eyebrows. With around 0:10 left on the clock, the Cowboys elected to run a quarterback draw with no timeouts to get them closer to the endzone. To no surprise, time expired before Dallas could line up and spike the ball. Offensive coordinator Kellen Moore supposedly called the play, with McCarthy giving the OK.

Dallas Cowboys could replace Mike McCarthy if expectations fall short

In an article posted by CBS Sports' Jason La Canfora, it is mentioned that Dallas could replace coach McCarthy if their expectations fell short this season. It’s safe to say that the team did not meet expectations with a first-round playoff exit despite having a unit capable of making a championship run. La Canfora mentions that Dallas could consider replacing McCarthy with one of their coordinators in Kellen Moore or Dan Quinn.