Cowboys' decision to keep Mike McCarthy all comes down to Dak Prescott

To all of the Dallas Cowboys loyalists prone to pulling out their hair over another disgusting early playoff exit, calm down.

Or, sorry.

Dak is coming back. And so is his coach, Mike McCarthy.

No, this is not the time to drop a bomb and blow up the whole operation. Shock and awe has its limits.

Jerry Jones made it official on Wednesday night, issuing a statement confirming that despite the uproar and speculation flowing from the wild-card playoff embarrassment against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, the embattled coach will get an encore act in 2024.

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Run it back?

Some of the die-hards will see this as crazy. You know what's been said: Insanity is what happens when you do the same thing and expect a different result. Sure, the Cowboys will make some tweaks next season. And this will presumably include the leaky defense. But McCarthy and Dak Prescott – with a 1-3 playoff record together – will be the central figures again. Given their playoff history, that's a bit risky.

McCarthy's just-trust-us message during a Thursday news conference had to be so reassuring for Cowboys Nation. Or not.

"I am very confident in our direction," McCarthy said.

Well, somebody had to say it. It comes on the heels of the message that Jones delivered to players on Monday, when he reminded him of his desire to win now. Knute Rockne couldn't have said it any better. It's just that Jones has been wanting to "win now" for decades since the last Super Bowl run.

Left unsaid by McCarthy, Jones or anyone else within the building is whether, after a three-hour meeting between the team owner and coach, the coach's contract was extended beyond 2024. Stay tuned. McCarthy might still be a lame duck heading into next season. 

Yet at least there's a connection between the quarterback and coach. Unlike Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, who was so nonchalant addressing hot-seat coach Nick Sirianni in the aftermath of a season-ending loss against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night, Prescott left no gray area about where he stands with McCarthy.

Prescott declared Sunday night that whatever heat that was due for his coach needed to include him. He didn't have to say that. Given his series of playoff flops over the years, it was coming anyway. But it was honorable nonetheless to hear the quarterback make such a passionate statement.

"I understand the business," Prescott said of his coach's job security. "In that case, it should be about me as well."

That's why it is easy to wish Prescott well. On top of the community service that earned him the NFL Walter Payton Man of the Year Award last year, he's a stand-up man. After the meltdown on Sunday, several of his high-profile teammates bolted from the locker room without daring to show their faces to the media – hello, Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence – while Prescott took the shots during his usual postgame news conference. Sure, he's a team leader and a real pro. But he shouldn't be the only one. It says something about the Cowboys' culture when big-name players eschew professionalism and essentially run and hide after a big loss.

In any event, the fallout from Sunday also reflects NFL insanity at work. Prescott might have had one of his worst games when it mattered most – "I sucked," he said after his two-interception outing that included a pick-six – but chances seem strong that in the coming months the quarterback will get a record-breaking contract.

Say what? 

Prescott, 30, has one year remaining on a four-year, $160 million contract that contains a whopping salary cap figure of nearly $59.5 million for 2024. It's the second-highest cap figure in the league, following Deshaun Watson's $64 million hit for the Cleveland Browns. With the cap projected to rise to $242.5 million per team in 2024, the Cowboys, according to OverTheCap.com, are figured to be over the cap by more than $14 million at the moment. That equates to another big payday for Prescott, as a contract extension might be the most feasible way for Jerry and Co. to manage their cap issue.

In other words, Prescott has some serious leverage in dealing with the Cowboys – which includes a no-trade clause and a provision that prevents the team from placing a franchise or transition tag on him.

Jones hasn't publicly revealed plans for Prescott's next contract, but he has acknowledged that wants his quarterback in place for a long time. Given the market, that could mean a contract that exceeds the five-year, $275 million deal that Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow struck in September.

A new deal for Prescott, in addition to helping the Cowboys get under the cap, could also provide flexibility that factors into long-term extensions for Parsons and star receiver CeeDee Lamb.

Thus, the Cowboys would be in an even bigger mess if they decided they want to move on from Prescott.

On many occasions, Jones has maintained regret that the Cowboys – who have gone 28 years since winning a Super Bowl or advancing to the NFC title game – didn't win a championship with Tony Romo at quarterback.

If the current pattern continues, he may say the same of the years with Prescott. Yet a line that someone said in a movie – this is business, never personal – can also be applied when it comes to the contract matter.

That, too, is why Prescott's post-game message about McCarthy was so significant. Prescott just had arguably his best regular season, leading the NFL with 36 touchdown passes and positioning himself as an MVP candidate in throwing for 4,516 yards. After tying for the NFL lead with 15 interceptions in 12 games in 2022, Prescott started all 17 games in 2023 and threw 9 picks. McCarthy had so much impact on Prescott's rebound year after taking over the play-calling duties.

In that vein, it makes a lot of sense to stick with McCarthy, the first coach in franchise history (Tom Landry included) to win at least 12 games in three consecutive seasons. If Prescott didn't go to Jones this week to lobby on behalf of his coach, the support expressed publicly on Sunday night said as much. And the lingering contract issue fortifies the position.

But with Prescott's 2-5 postseason mark including three defeats in playoff openers at home, something else has to happen.

As bad as Prescott was on Sunday, he had plenty of company. The defense, impressive enough during stretches this season to enable coordinator Dan Quinn to re-emerge as a hot candidate for another head coaching job, was a disaster against Green Bay.

That's not on Prescott, but it illuminated that they can hardly run it back with that unit, either.

The offseason is here for the Cowboys. And so is the drama of what comes next. One way or another, it promises to be quite the ride.