Odds on Mike McCarthy Being the Cowboys Head Coach in 2021
- Odds have been posted on whether Mike McCarthy will be back for a second season as the Dallas Cowboys’ coach in 2021
- The Cowboys are 2-5 and will be without injured quarterback Dak Prescott for the remainder of the season
- Read below for odds on if McCarthy will remain the head coach of the Cowboys for the 2021 season
Things have changed dramatically for the Dallas Cowboys and first-year coach Mike McCarthy during the first half of the season.
The Cowboys are 2-5 and riddled by injuries. The most noticeable absence is quarterback Dak Prescott.
The situation has reached the point where odds have been set on whether McCarthy will still be the coach when next season rolls around.
Odds Mike McCarthy is Cowboys Coach in 2021
| Prop | Odds |
|---|---|
| Yes | -1000 |
| No | +550 |
Odds taken Oct. 28
That is a far cry from the optimism that surrounded McCarthy prior to Week 1. He was so highly regarded by the oddsmakers that it led some to believe McCarthy could be the coach to end the Cowboys’ Super Bowl drought that stretches 25 years.
The odds of McCarthy being NFL Coach of the Year was +1300 then. He was second to the New England Patriots’ Bill Belichick (+1200).
An Awful Season
Even the biggest Cowboys hater could not have realistically forecast that America’s Team would be 2-5 as midseason approaches. There was far too much talent on the roster.
Yet that is the Cowboys’ record after they were manhandled 25-3 on the road by the lowly Washington Football Team in Week 7.
The Cowboys flew all the way to Washington DC to kick a FG 😂
— Hair Hustler💈💰 (@TOOTTHEBARBER) October 25, 2020
The Cowboys are last in the NFL in both scoring defense (34.7 points a game) and rushing defense (178.3 yards a game). They are 27th in total defense (408.1 ypg).
McCarthy was hired in part to rejuvenate Dallas’ offense. While the Cowboys lead the league with 316.1 yards passing a game and are third in total offense (418.0 ypg), they are just 18th in scoring (25.1 ppg) and 24th in rushing (101.9 ypg).
While going 8-8 and missing the playoffs last season with Jason Garrett as coach, the Cowboys led the NFL in total offense (431.5 ypg), was second in passing (296.9 ypg), fifth in rushing (134.6 ypg), and sixth in scoring (27.1 ppg).
Missing Dak
In fairness to McCarthy, he is faced with playing the remainder of the season without the dynamic Prescott.
Prescott sustained a severe ankle injury in Week 5 during a game against the New York Giants. Veteran Andy Dalton guided the Cowboys to a 34-31 victory in that one.
Dak Prescott was on pace for 48 overall TDs, 6760 passing YDs, and a 68% completion percentage prior to his devastating ankle injury.
He had already played 25% of the season. pic.twitter.com/Ffig0MzgDU
— Barstool Sabermetrics (@sabermetrics) October 15, 2020
However, the Cowboys have lost the two games Dalton has started by a combined score of 63-13, including a 38-10 thrashing by the Arizona Cardinals in Week 6.
Dalton is questionable for Sunday night’s game against the Eagles (2-4-1) in Philadelphia – amazingly a showdown for first place in the weak NFC East — after sustaining a concussion against Washington.
Cowboys: 2-4
Eagles: 1-4-1
Washington: 1-5
Giants: 1-5The NFC East has a collective record of 5-18-1 through Week 6 😬 pic.twitter.com/A3HODbOPce
— ESPN (@espn) October 20, 2020
If he can’t go, rookie Ben DiNucci will get the call.
Though they were just 2-3 in his starts, the Cowboys averaged 32.6 points a game with Prescott running the offense. That average has slipped all the way to 6.5 in Dalton’s two starts.
Prescott completed 68 percent of his passes for 1,856 yards – including three games of at least 450 yards – and nine touchdowns with four interceptions.
Conversely, Dalton has a competition percentage of 61.2 with 452 yards, one TD, and three picks.
Communication Trouble?
One of the knocks on McCarthy during the latter stages of his 13 seasons as the Green Bay Packers coach was that he had trouble communicating with the players and particularly quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
Some Cowboys were taken aback when McCarthy criticized them for not going after Redskins linebacker Joe Bostic last Sunday when he concussed Dalton with a late hit that resulted in an ejection.
This is horrible.
Cowboys QB Andy Dalton was knocked out cold after taking a vicious helmet to helmet hit vs Washington.https://t.co/g8OUOQ0U74
— NFL Memes (@NFL_Memes) October 25, 2020
However, while owner Jerry Jones admits he is frustrated, he says he is solidly behind McCarthy.
Jones also has a track record of patience for the most part. All his coaches have been given at least two full seasons. Garrett was on the job for 10 years despite winning just two playoff games.
Thus, it is hard to see Jones pulling the plug on McCarthy after one season, even as miserable as 2020 might be.
John Perrotto has been covering and writing about sports for various outlets for over 40 years. His work has appeared in the likes of USA TODAY, ESPN.com, SI.com, Forbes.com, The Associated Press, Baseball Digest, and more. John is based out of Beaver Falls, PA.
