Subsequent man up: Mike McCarthy failed to interrupt the Cowboys divisional spherical curse

The wait is lastly over. Mike McCarthy shouldn’t be the pinnacle coach of the Dallas Cowboys anymore. He lasted 5 eventful years with three seasons within the center when he took the staff to the playoffs. On the surface of these promising seasons, his squad completed with a shedding report, largely attributable to being with out his beginning quarterback, Dak Prescott.

When McCarthy was employed to take over the staff from Jason Garrett, the hope was that he would do one thing his predecessor couldn’t – advance previous the divisional spherical. Sadly, the Cowboys’ playoff destiny ended the identical approach it had earlier than. With three photographs on the playoffs, the Cowboys by no means made it previous the divisional spherical. In actual fact, in two of these three playoff appearances, the Cowboys didn’t even make it to the divisional spherical. Regardless of extra constant regular-season success, they didn’t have it collectively come the postseason.

Below McCarthy, the Cowboys have been the no. 2, no. 3, and no. 5 seed. Twice they opened with house playoff video games after profitable the NFC East. As soon as they opened on the street touring to Tampa Bay to face Tom Brady’s Buccaneers. Oddly sufficient, it was this Wild Card street recreation that ended up being McCarthy’s solely playoff win because the Cowboys coach.

The Cowboys have been bounced from the playoffs in consecutive years in opposition to the San Francisco 49ers after which by Inexperienced Bay the next season. In all three of those postseason losses, there have been moments when despair began settling in for the Cowboys. The staff appeared outmatched. It wasn’t as a result of they have been up in opposition to a extra gifted opponent, however quite simply being outplayed. The creativity wasn’t from Dallas. The blown assignments, nevertheless, have been. Whether or not it was a gradual dying or a fast-and-furious beatdown, the Cowboys have been despatched fishing and left questioning the place did issues go fallacious?

In 2021 in opposition to the 49ers, they fell to 13-0 within the second quarter, and once more 23-7 within the third quarter. The Cowboys couldn’t ever acquire any traction and once they lastly made a push, they ran out of time. Actually. The clock struck zeros earlier than Prescott might spike the ball after a designed run. In simply his first journey to the playoffs as their head coach, they’d discovered a brand new method to have an embarrassing finish to their soccer season.

The next yr they discovered themselves in a defensive battle with the 49ers. Sadly, the offense struggled and Prescott threw two expensive interceptions. The Cowboys stored issues shut by way of three quarters, however San Fran took management within the remaining quarter-hour of the sport. No matter his Cowboys groups needed to give, they didn’t have any combat in them down the stretch to get the win.

What occurred in opposition to the Packers in 2023 is difficult to elucidate. Inexperienced Bay scored 4 unanswered touchdowns to go up 27-0 within the first half. When the Cowboys lastly began scoring some factors, the Packers shortly answered and all the time stayed too far out of attain. In his first-ever playoff recreation, Jordan Love virtually had an ideal passer ranking. Working again Aaron Jones scored three touchdowns. It was horrible.

The sport had an eerie similarity to their 2016 playoff matchup when the Cowboys hosted a Packers staff who had additionally began the season 4-6, however then bought scorching and earned one of many remaining playoff spots. And like then, the Packers went forward huge early. Inexperienced Bay scored touchdowns on their first three possessions and took a 21-3 lead. Nevertheless, in 2016 the Cowboys stored combating and tied the sport at 31-31 with simply 35 seconds left. Sadly, this recreation had a nasty ending as properly, however no less than the Cowboys fought their approach again into the sport.

Not solely did McCarthy’s staff fail to recover from the divisional spherical hump, in every occasion, they only appeared to worsen as the sport progressed. They weren’t figuring something out. They weren’t making the mandatory changes. They have been simply there. There to fall quick once more.

The Cowboys will reset their head coach and one other fella will get an opportunity to crack the code. Will issues ever change? We don’t know, however possibly with one other man in cost, the Cowboys will likely be higher ready when the postseason rolls round.