Another day, another reason not to treat Jerry Jones’ words like gospel. The Cowboys’ season tanked to a 7-10 finish after losing to the Commanders, and Jones decided to go poetic about incentive plans for coaches. “I might say, ‘Look, I’m going to pay you this much. But if you get to the playoffs or win a Super Bowl, I’ll give you five times that.” Bold strategy, but that’s common for Jerry. Who better than Mike McCarthy to sense that it was at that moment the writing was on the wall?

And now, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero broke the news: Mike McCarthy is out as Cowboys coach. Why? The sides couldn’t agree on the length of a contract, and McCarthy will pursue other opportunities. Ah! This whole thing is so typical of Jones.

After the week 18 loss to Washington, he also said: “Mike’s one of the best coaches that I think there is. He’s done absolutely nothing to diminish my opinion of him as a coach.” Guess asking for a higher pay for himself was reason enough to cut McCarthy. But he did not go without accumulating a fortune for himself.

You see, Per ESPN’s Todd Archer, McCarthy pulled $8 million a year from his five-year deal signed in 2020. For context, 10 head coaches were raking in $9 million or more, with Jim Harbaugh pocketing a cool $16 million from the Chargers. Yeah, only if he was Mike Harbaugh and not McCarthy, things would have turned out differently. But that’s just another ‘what if’. And it’s better to stay away from this one…

Talking about the McCarthy era, well, that’s flip over to the next page in Dallas. But we can talk, right? His tenure ended as the owner of the fourth-best regular-season win percentage (59.8%) in Cowboys history. But here’s the rub: playoff success remained elusive. His 1-3 postseason record extends the Cowboys’ painful 29-year drought without a conference championship appearance. Guess this was the reason for disdain among the fans.

But at the same time fans still did respect McCarthy for what he did from 2021 to 2023… With a healthy Dak Prescott, McCarthy and the Cowboys cooked! Three straight 12-5 seasons, two NFC East crowns, and a scoring offense that often left the league playing catch-up. Yet, for all the dominance, Dallas couldn’t translate regular-season firepower into deep playoff runs, leaving McCarthy’s legacy a mix of highs and “what ifs.”

And alas, it ended on a sour note as negotiations between McCarthy and the Cowboys hit the two-minute warning and couldn’t beat the clock. With the team dragging its feet on a new deal for over a year, maybe McCarthy didn’t want to return to the sideline circus, anyway. Can you blame him? When Jerry’s more focused on hypotheticals than hardware, even loyal coaches might start looking for an exit.

Maybe, just maybe, it opens a door for Mike to go and show his acumen elsewhere. As for Dallas, Jerry might just be sucking out all the breath of fresh air the America’s Team needs to get things going.

Mike McCarthy is open for negotiations

Mike McCarthy’s exit from Dallas is more than just a coaching change. It’s the start of an NFL free agency saga that could turn heads. After a rocky offseason, where Jerry Jones and McCarthy couldn’t come to an agreement, McCarthy is officially free to explore his options. Now that McCarthy’s marriage with Big D came to an end, where does he go next?

Could McCarthy make a comeback with the Monsters of the Midway? The Bears reportedly wanted to chat with him about their head coaching vacancy, but the Cowboys shut it down. Weird move, right? With playmakers on both sides of the ball, a shot at Caleb Williams, and $66 million in cap space, Chicago could be an intriguing option.

Or maybe McCarthy heads to the Big Easy. The Saints are starting fresh after parting ways with Dennis Allen. They’ve been chatting with candidates like Mike Kafka and Aaron Glenn. But here’s the catch: their cap space is a nightmare, and Derek Carr might not even stick around. Could McCarthy steady the ship?

And then there’s the Jets. They’re rebuilding after cleaning house mid-season. McCarthy reuniting with Aaron Rodgers in New York? That’s one juicy storyline. They’ve got questions: Is Rodgers staying? Would McCarthy’s arrival keep him around? Jets fans buckle up.

Broadcasting isn’t off the table either. McCarthy’s got the credentials to call plays from a studio if the sidelines take a backseat. Whatever comes next, one thing’s for sure: McCarthy’s story isn’t over yet.