Jimmy Johnson’s Straightforward Message to Mike McCarthy as Pivotal Dallas Cowboys Season Looms

It's no secret that there will be a watchful eye on the Dallas Cowboys during the 2024 season. As the season approaches, several questions linger about the Cowboys, particularly concerning head coach Mike McCarthy.

McCarthy enters his fifth season in Dallas, unsurprisingly, as one of the NFL coaches on the hot seat, ranking No. 1 on many lists. In fact, some were surprised McCarthy didn't get the boot after last season.

The Cowboys won the NFC East last year, recording a 12-5 record, their third straight, but they did what they typically do in the postseason: lose.

Not only did the Cowboys lose, but they were also thumped by the underdog Green Bay Packers and first-year starting quarterback Jordan Love, 42-38.

But winning cures all, right? That's what former Super Bowl-winning Cowboys head coach Jimmy Johnson believes. While on "The Herd with Colin Cowherd," Johnson discussed what McCarthy needs to do to keep his position with the Cowboys.

"Win big, and you're going to get a huge contract," Johnson bluntly told Cowherd. "Then you have all the leverage."

McCarthy is 67-42 overall as the Cowboys head coach, with three straight playoff appearances and two NFC East titles. However, the problem is the same one all other Cowboys coaches, not named Johnson or Barry Switzer, have faced: failing to advance past the NFC Divisional round since 1995, the last year the team won the Super Bowl.

In the 13 postseason appearances by the Cowboys and six head coaches since then, Dallas has been bounced out in either the Wild Card or the Divisional round.

This will be McCarthy's final year under the five-year deal he signed with the Cowboys in 2020. Johnson is likely right in his assumptions. Jerry Jones will probably back up the Brinks truck if McCarthy can "win big." But what will be considered "winning big" this season?

"People say, 'Well, he's under pressure.' Well, hey, every coach is under pressure, every year, every coach in the league," Johnson added. "But it doesn't bother me being in the last year of his contract. Because you gotta win regardless of what the contract is."

Johnson was 80-44 as the Cowboys coach, winning two Super Bowl titles in five seasons.

The Cowboys not only face future opponents but also the challenge of piecing together their own team. They still have to figure out how to extend Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, and Micah Parsons. Prescott and Lamb will both be unrestricted free agents at the end of the season, while Parsons has a club option for 2025 and could enter free agency in 2026.

The Cowboys also lost a significant amount of talent from last year in free agency, including multiple starters on their offensive line and running back Tony Pollard.

It will be interesting to see how Jones judges this year's Cowboys team, given the talent level taking a hit and other distractions. If McCarthy can get the Cowboys back to the playoffs and win at least one game, that could be enough. Then again, anything short of an NFC Championship appearance might spell the end of his tenure.