The Cowboys’ 2024 roster didn’t set Mike McCarthy up for success

FRISCO, Texas — Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones did Mike McCarthy no favors in 2024. Now the two will go their separate ways.

McCarthy will not return as Cowboys head coach in 2025, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Monday.

Jones allowed McCarthy and his entire staff to coach the season in the final year of their contracts with a roster arguably worse than the one that lost in the wild-card round to the Green Bay Packers last January.

Yes, the Cowboys made quarterback Dak Prescott the highest-paid player in NFL history and CeeDee Lamb the second-highest-paid wide receiver in the NFL, but they had to be on the team in 2024, whether they had an extension or not. The team made few moves to surround their expensive talent and set them up for success.

The Cowboys’ most notable free agent addition was linebacker Eric Kendricks on a one-year, $3 million deal. He surpassed his price tag, led the Cowboys in tackles, and served as defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer’s coach on the field and a mentor to younger linebackers such as DeMarvion Overshown and Marist Liufau.

The second biggest addition was running back Ezekiel Elliott, who returned after a one-year layoff. It didn’t work out. Elliott, who rushed for 226 yards and three TDs, was inactive for one game for disciplinary reasons and released before Week 18 at his request so he could try to sign with a playoff team.

The Cowboys found training camp success at various levels with free agent additions defensive end Carl Lawson and defensive tackle Linval Joseph.

But that was it.

The Cowboys relied on internal improvement, and it came in varying-sized doses from players like defensive tackle Mazi Smith, tight end Luke Schoonmaker, linebacker Overshown and defensive end Chauncey Golston.

But tight end Jake Ferguson was less effective in 2024 (474 ​​yards receiving, no TDs) after being added to the Pro Bowl roster in 2023 (761 yards receiving, five TDs). Pass rusher Sam Williams tore his left ACL in training camp. Wide receiver Jalen Tolbert led the Cowboys in touchdown catches (seven), but was too quiet as the No. 2 receiver for part of the season. After catching the game-winning pass against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 5, he had just two games with more than three catches and one game with more than 45 yards the rest of the season.

Yes, the injuries took their toll, but the Cowboys also struggled when healthy.

This year’s rookie class was up and down. First-round offensive tackle Tyler Guyton had an inconsistent season, dealing with injuries and at times being pulled for foul play, including 18 penalties. Second-round pick Marshawn Kneeland, a defensive end, dealt with a right knee injury most of the season. Third rounder Cooper Beebe looks like a goalie in the middle. Liufau does the same at linebacker. Fourth-round cornerback Caelen Carson’s confidence cratered early, and he finished the season on injured reserve after shoulder surgery.

McCarthy has been a draft-and-develop coach since his time with the Packers. They rarely dipped into free agency, except to sign cornerback Charles Woodson and defensive end Julius Peppers.

The Cowboys have also become a draft-and-develop team, but ignoring free agency doesn’t make a roster better.

The Cowboys haven’t played at the high end of the free agent market in more than a decade (Brandon Carr, 2012). Instead, they’ve focused on the middle or low end of the market, which is why they didn’t explore the possibility of adding elite free agent running back Derrick Henry and signing Elliott last offseason. They believe in keeping as many of their own players as possible

In the end, the approach has been good. Just not good enough for a Super Bowl run.

In 2023, the Cowboys’ big moves were for cornerback Stephon Gilmore and wide receiver Brandin Cooks. They gave up day 3 choices for proven raw materials. They didn’t make similar moves last offseason. At the trade deadline this season, the Cowboys gave up a fourth-round pick for wide receiver Jonathan Mingo. He caught five passes, but his story will continue in 2025 when he has a full offseason with Prescott and whatever offense the Cowboys end up running.

The decision to walk away from McCarthy isn’t just about a 7-10 record in 2024, it’s about his five years as a head coach. Ultimately, McCarthy was hired to get the Cowboys to at least an NFC championship game, a place they haven’t been since 1995, and in three postseason chances, it didn’t happen.

If the next coach wants to achieve those goals, the pressure will be on Jones to make more improvements to the roster than he did for McCarthy’s last season in Dallas.