‘Big Mistake!’ Washington Coach Ron Rivera Rips Cowboys’ Mike McCarthy for ‘We’ll Win’ Prediction

“We’re going to win this game,” McCarthy says. “I’m confident in that.”

WASHINGTON - Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy channeled his inner Jimmy Johnson by (kinda) “guaranteeing” a victory over the Washington Football Team ahead of the Sunday Week 14 face-off at FedEx Field.

“We’re going to win this game,” McCarthy said. “I’m confident in that.”

Washington coach Ron Rivera then fired back, ripping McCarthy’s ploy as “a big mistake.”

“You do that for a couple of reasons,” Rivera explained. “One, you want to get in our head. Secondly, he’s trying to convince his team. He’s now made it about him. I think it’s a big mistake.

We’re not sure about the “made it about him” interpretation; that’s nonsense. What McCarthy actually did was …

1) Inspire his team by demonstrating confidence while getting “in the heads” of the WFT. Or …

2) Stir up a hornet’s nest of inspiration for the opponent.

This will be the first of two regular-season matchups between the rivals, who also will meet in Dallas on December 26. Washington (6-6) currently trails the Cowboys (8-4) by two games in the NFC East. 

A Dallas win and McCarthy’s team - maybe fortified by his remarks - takes control of the division.

A Washington win, and McCarthy’s words will be remembered as having backfired … not to mention for having been wrong.

For now, this much is true: Rivera repeatedly insisted McCarthy’s remarks are “not important.” But the more the WFT said that … the more important the remarks seem to be.