Stephen A. Smith has thrown a Hail Mary of criticism, branding the Dallas Cowboys “absolutely stupid” for passing on Bill Belichick. His fiery take, coming hot on the heels of the Cowboys’ shocking 48-32 playoff loss to the Green Bay Packers last season, has set Cowboys Nation ablaze, stirring up a hornets’ nest of debate about the team’s leadership and future.

On his show, Smith didn’t just criticize – he went for the jugular, aiming at both Jerry Jones and Mike McCarthy. “Either way you slice it, let me tell y’all right now and I mean this sincerely, I’m not trolling, it was absolutely stupid for the Dallas Cowboys not to let go of Mike McCarthy and offer Bill Belichick the job,” Smith declared.

He didn’t stop there, questioning McCarthy’s ability to handle the pressure of the Cowboys’ spotlight. “It’s not one of those things where you’re advocating or calling for Mike McCarthy to be fired,” Smith explained. “The subject matter is that you have a six-time champion as a head coach in this man right here and think about what the problem is with the Dallas Cowboys.”

Smith argued that bringing in Belichick would’ve been a game-changer for the Cowboys, especially given their recent playoff woes. “He’d lock in and zero in on the players meticulously so where he’s highlighting every little crevice of deficiency that they may have, making them better and making them worthy of being America’s team,” Smith asserted. This laser-focused approach stands in stark contrast to the current regime’s perceived shortcomings.

Under Mike McCarthy, the Cowboys have been regular-season darlings, notching three straight 12-5 seasons and an impressive 42-25 overall record. But when the calendar flips to January, they’ve been more lamb than lion, managing just one playoff victory in four attempts. It’s a far cry from the dynasty days of the ’90s, and fans are getting restless.

Mike McCarthy’s playoff record with the Cowboys

Smith’s hypothetical Belichick scenario is like catnip for frustrated Cowboys faithful. Belichick’s defensive wizardry and ability to neutralize opponents’ strengths could’ve been the secret sauce Dallas has been missing. As Smith put it, “You have a brilliant defensive mind like Bill Belichick is my defensive coordinator who just wants to stay in it because he’s 72 years of age and he doesn’t want to fade away from the game.”

Belichick’s potential impact on Cowboys’ culture

But here’s where it gets really interesting. Smith argues that Belichick’s notoriously tight-lipped media approach would’ve been a perfect fit with Jerry Jones’ spotlight-loving ways. “He doesn’t want to say anything anyway. I mean that gives Jerry Jones the license to talk all he wants to,” Smith quipped. It’s a yin-yang dynamic that could’ve allowed Jones to keep his high-profile role while giving Belichick the keys to the football kingdom.

However, not everyone’s buying what Smith is selling. Shannon Sharpe, for one, sees potential disaster. “Hell no,” Sharpe said on ESPN back in January when asked if Belichick and Jones would be a good fit. “Do you not understand that Bill Belichick wants authority? Can you imagine Jerry Jones trying to hold a press conference and tell what’s going on with the team? And you think coach Belichick is going to sit by—idly by—and let Jerry do that? Absolutely not, it would be the worst—it’s a match made in hell.”

Smith counters this argument by pointing out Jones’ history with strong personalities. “There’s a reason (Jones) got rid of Jimmy Johnson, he got rid of Bill Parcells,” he noted, suggesting that Jones might be wary of another domineering coach. Interestingly, Belichick has a connection to Dallas, having served on Parcells’ staff during his Cowboys tenure from 2003 to 2006.

Meanwhile, the Cowboys are stuck with McCarthy, a decision that’s looking shakier by the day. Recent reports suggest McCarthy is growing “fed up” with Jones’ tendency to undermine him. An ex-Cowboys personnel told Tyler Dunne of Go Long in June, “He’s doing it the best he can. Some of the people I’ve talked to have said that he’s getting fed up with it a little bit.”

Adding fuel to the fire, Jones praised Belichick while McCarthy sat right beside him. “I think he may be the best coach, certainly of my time in the NFL, and I happen to be part of a team that had the great Tom Landry, and I’d put him right there,” Jones said this week. Talk about awkward!

As Belichick remains a coaching free agent, having recently turned down a defensive coordinator role with the 49ers (a position he hasn’t held since 1999), the “what if” game continues. Kyle Shanahan revealed to the Athletic, “I threw it out to him. He loves football so much that you never know what he … I can’t believe he’s not a head coach of a team right now.”

With McCarthy entering the final year of his contract without an extension, every play call and sideline decision will be under the microscope. As the pressure mounts, Cowboys fans are left wondering: did they fumble away their best shot at reclaiming glory? After all, this is a team that boasted both the No. 4 defense and No. 4 offense in the NFL last year. With that kind of talent, one can’t help but imagine what Belichick might have accomplished.