Who the Cowboys could hire as head coach if Mike McCarthy is fired

After several years of suffering through being a Dallas Cowboys fan, you learn to take what Jerry Jones says with a grain of salt. Then again, the faith he puts in any head coach that doesn’t threaten his position as general manager is alarming. Jones fired Jimmy Johnson in 1993, a year after Johnson brought the Cowboys to back-to-back Super Bowls victories.

But current coach Mike McCarthy, who’s yet to lead the Cowboys past the Divisional Round of the playoffs and has them off to a 3-3 start this season, is apparently not even in danger of losing his job. Jones said he “hadn’t even considered that” after the Cowboys had their worst blowout loss in Jones’ 35 years as the owner on Sunday (which also happened to be Jones’ 82nd birthday), a 47-9 humiliation at home to the Detroit Lions.

“We’re disappointed that we’re 3-3,” Jones said. “The three-loss side of it, I don’t necessarily totally blame on McCarthy. The players will tell you they had something to do with it, too. His other parts of the staff will tell you. And the owner sure will tell you he had something to do with it, so it’s not all on him.”

Jones did fire Wade Phillips mid-season back in 2010 after he got the Cowboys off to a 1-7 start, so while it’s not quite that bad yet, there’s still time for the Cowboys to mess it up enough for Jones to reconsider. The Cowboys head into their bye week for Week 7 before facing the San Francisco 49ers in Week 8. However, even if he doesn’t now, McCarthy’s contract is up at the end of the season so there’s a good chance he won’t get a renewal.

If Jones ever does make that decision, here are some options for who could be McCarthy’s replacement.

Potential Cowboys head coach replacements for Mike McCarthy

Bill Belichick, former Patriots HC

The rumors that Bill Belichick could take McCarthy’s place as head coach in Dallas have been ongoing ever since they lost to the Green Bay Packers in the first round of the playoffs last season. Although Belichick has technically retired, it’s widely believed that he would return to coach again if given the chance.

Belichick is the NFL coach with the most Super Bowl titles in history (eight), although many argue that was more due to quarterback Tom Brady than Belichick. Still, he did win two as the New York Giants’ assistant coach and was able to take the New England Patriots to the playoffs with Mac Jones under center.

But hiring Belichick would very likely mean Jones giving him quite a bit more control over personnel decisions, and well, that may not happen while he’s still alive.

Sean Payton, Denver Broncos coach

Payton was an assistant head coach and quarterbacks coach for the Cowboys in 2003, coaching three different quarterbacks to 3,000-yard passing seasons. He remained with the team until the 2006 season, when he was hired as the head coach for the New Orleans Saints, who he took to their first Super Bowl win just three years later.

Jerry Jones has been outspoken in praising Payton, who has a .617 winning percentage, but depending on how he does with the Broncos this season, he may come at the cost of some draft picks.

Lincoln Riley, USC head coach

Riley has never coached in the NFL, but it seems like a task he’s ready to take on. He’s the one who coached Chicago Bears rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, who’s quickly becoming their future franchise QB. While Riley isn’t the best defensive mind, his offensive mind is one of the best out there, something Dallas could really use right now.

Riley was linked to Dallas back in 2019 when Jones fired coach Jason Garrett, so even though it didn’t happen then, it could be a possibility after this season.

Ben Johnson, Detroit Lions offensive coordinator

Obviously, Johnson knows how to control an offense. I think that was abundantly clear on Sunday, and has been clear since he took control of the Lions’ offense in 2022, leading them to a top five offense with eight games over 30 points. Ever since then, he’s been pursued by other NFL teams as both an OC and a head coach, but has remained in Detroit, bringing them to their first division title since 1993 and first playoff win since 1991 and turning quarterback Jared Goff into a franchise QB. After this season, it might finally be time for him to take that head coach position, and Dallas will be in the market.