Former Dallas Cowboys Head Coach Mike McCarthy will reportedly sit out the 2025 season and turn his attention toward securing a head coaching job in 2026. The Super Bowl-winning head coach did not have his contract renewed by the Dallas Cowboys following the conclusion of the 2024-2025 season. He and Cowboys Owner/President/General Manager Jerry Jones could not agree on a contract extension.
McCarthy was expected to land a job this hiring cycle but came up empty. He was viewed as a top candidate to be the next head coach of the Chicago Bears and New Orleans Saints. Chicago turned to Detroit Lions Offensive Coordinator Ben Johnson to lead them and McCarthy removed himself from consideration for the New Orleans job after it became clear he would not land that job either. Will he land a job next offseason?
Mike McCarthy’s Coaching Career
Former #Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy has decided to focus on the 2026 hiring cycle and will not coach in the NFL this season, sources tell me and @RapSheet.
McCarthy, who has made the playoffs 12 times in 18 seasons, is expected to be a strong candidate a year from now. pic.twitter.com/Vr8mMijIkq
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 29, 2025
McCarthy has been one of the league’s best coaches since taking over the Green Bay Packers in 2006. In his 13 seasons with the team, he had a 125-77-2 record and won Super Bowl XLV. He was fired by the Packers following Week 13 of the 2018 season. As he will do this season, McCarthy also sat out the 2019 season. He was then hired by the Dallas Cowboys before the 2020 season.
His tenure with “America’s Team” was ultimately a disappointing one. McCarthy was bought to Dallas to help them break their three-decade NFC Championship drought. He was unable to do so but had regular season success with the team. The issues for the head coach came in the NFL Playoffs. From 2021-2023, he led the Cowboys to three straight 12-win seasons. He finished his tenure in Dallas with a 49-35 overall record.
The Cowboys won a lone playoff game over those three years. They lost home playoff games in 2021 and 2023 with an embarrassing loss to Green Bay in the NFC Wild Card Playoffs two seasons ago. Dallas trailed 41-16 at one point and would lose 48-32.
Final Thoughts
McCarthy will undoubtedly be a hot commodity come next offseason. He has decided that a high-profile job will come open next year, and he will be able to land that job. With his track record, that is a sound way of thinking.
With that being said, McCarthy should be the next head coach of the Chicago Bears. Chicago turned to an unproven commodity to help unlock the talent of Quarterback Caleb Williams. McCarthy, while not experiencing the greatest postseason success, is a known quantity. He will improve the team instantly. No one can be sure how Johnson will fare as a first-time head coach with lofty expectations. McCarthy will have a year to sit back and survey the NFL landscape as he prepares to roam the sidelines again in 2026.
