Potential coaching candidate will have Cowboys fans begging to keep Mike McCarthy

Mike McCarthy has struggled this season but he's a far better option for the Cowboys than one potential candidate.

Aug 24, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy talks to the media before the game against the Los Angeles Chargers at AT&T Stadium. / Tim Heitman-Imagn Images

It feels as though Mike McCarthy has been on the hot seat ever since taking the head coaching job with the Dallas Cowboys in 2020. This year, however, the seat has been an absolute inferno.

Dallas is sitting at 3-3 during their bye week and they have a daunting schedule in front of them. They also have some major concerns following a 47-9 loss to the Detroit Lions in Week 6. That defeat was bad enough on its own, but it's become a trend with the Cowboys losing their past four games at AT&T Stadium.

The way Dallas lost led to even more questions about McCarthy's future, which Jerry Jones said isn't going to happen right now. He did leave the door open to fire any radio hosts who upset him, but McCarthy is safe. For now.

Sep 8, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy argues with line judge Julian Mapp (10) during the third quarter against the Cleveland Browns at Huntington Bank Field. / Scott Galvin-Imagn Images

Having said that, we all know what will happen if they miss the playoffs. Jones will move on and will surely begin combing through an underwhelming list of candidates — as he did when he hired McCarthy. Knowing the way Jones operates; RJ Ochoa of Blogging the Boys threw out the name of a potential candidate that would have fans begging for McCarthy to stick around.

My bold prediction... is that Jason Garrett gets an interview."@rjochoa on who he thinks will be the surprise candidate for the Cowboys coaching job if Mike McCarthy is fired pic.twitter.com/iITIjrhD47

— Maggie and Perloff (@MaggieandPerl) October 16, 2024

Ochoa said the Cowboys could wind up interviewing former head coach Jason Garrett. To be fair, he stated that this was his "bold" prediction but then added that none of us would be overly surprised to see an alert on our phones that Jones is interviewing the man he once hoped would be his "Tom Landry."

Sep 29, 2019; New Orleans, LA, USA; Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett claps in the first quarter against the New Orleans Saints at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. / Chuck Cook-Imagn Images

Garrett, who was a backup quarterback in Dallas for eight years in the 1990s, was hired as the offensive coordinator in 2007. That move was controversial at the time since Jones selected Garrett for his staff before hiring a coach, later naming him the OC when they selected Wade Phillips.

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During the 2010 season, Phillips was fired following a 1-7 start and Garrett led them to a 5-3 record. That was enough for him to get hired as the full-time coach and 10 years of frustration ensued.

Garrett finished 8-8 in each season from 2011 through 2013. He did have three campaigns with double-digit wins by was just 2-3 in the postseason. Like McCarthy, he entered his final season without any job security and was not retained following an 8-8 season in 2019.

He spent two seasons as the offensive coordinator with the New York Giants where he proved to be the only man capable of stopping Saquon Barkley. Garrett is currently an analyst on NBC's Football Night in America.

Nov 22, 2021; Tampa, Florida, USA; New York Giants offensive coordinator Jason Garrett against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium. / Kim Klement-Imagn Images

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