Cowboys HC Mike McCarthy In Line For Extension
Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy is under contract through 2024, and it stands to reason that the team would not want him to go into the 2024 campaign as a lame duck. To that end, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com says McCarthy is in line for an extension in the offseason.
When asked about the possibility of such an extension at last week’s league meetings, owner Jerry Jones said, “[t]hat’ll have a course that seeks its own time frame. I don’t do anything of that sort until the season is over.”
That hardly sounds like a guarantee that a new deal will be consummated in the coming months, but it is nonetheless difficult to imagine any other outcome. McCarthy bet on himself to a degree by parting ways with former offensive coordinator Kellen Moore this past offseason and taking over play-calling responsibilities, and that decision could not have gone much better for him. Under McCarthy’s watch, quarterback Dak Prescott is enjoying the finest season of his career and is firmly in the MVP discussion — thereby setting himself up for a lucrative extension of his own — and the Cowboys presently rank first in scoring offense, fourth in total offense, and sixth in offensive DVOA.
As Rapoport observes, McCarthy’s job security is always a talking point in Dallas, and merely qualifying for the playoffs has not compelled Jones to retain a head coach in the past. Before last season’s playoffs got underway, however, Jones unequivocally stated that the outcome of the postseason contests would not influence his decision with respect to McCarthy, and while the Cowboys were ousted by the 49ers for the second consecutive year, there were no serious rumblings that McCarthy’s job was in jeopardy.
Last month, Peter King of NBC Sports suggested that Jones — who was long rumored to covet Sean Payton for Dallas’ HC post — might make a run at current Patriots head coach Bill Belichick if Belichick should, as expected, become available in the offseason. King said that in order for Belichick or any other candidate to become a serious consideration for Jones, the Cowboys would have to lose the NFC East, have a questionable showing or two down the stretch of the regular season, and go winless in the playoffs.
Since King’s piece was published, the Cowboys have rattled off four straight victories to bring their current win streak to five and their record to 10-3. That stretch includes a 33-13 thumping of the division-rival Eagles last week, and while Philadelphia (also 10-3) has the easier schedule over the last four games of the season, Dallas currently has momentum on its side.
Over his first three-plus seasons with the Cowboys, McCarthy has compiled a 40-23 regular season record and a 1-2 mark in the playoffs. Of course, he spent the better part of 13 seasons as the Packers’ head coach, capturing a Lombardi Trophy during his tenure in Green Bay.
NFC Coaching Notes: Phillips, McCarthy, Rumph
Vikings offensive coordinator Wes Phillips was arrested Friday night and charged with misdemeanor operation of a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, ESPN’s Kevin Seifert notes.
Phillips’ blood alcohol content was tested after he was stopped on I-394 at roughly 9:45pm, per the Minnesota State Patrol. His BAC was 0.10, putting it above the legal limit (0.08) for the state of Minnesota. Phillips was booked later that night and released on a $300 bond a few hours later. He has a court appearance scheduled for December 21, and for the time being, he is on track to continue his team duties.
“Wes immediately notified the team following his arrest last night,” a Vikings statement reads. “This morning we contacted the NFL, and after internal discussion, made the decision Wes will travel with the team to Las Vegas this afternoon. We will continue to gather information regarding the incident and have further comment at the appropriate time.”
Phillips is in his second season as Minnesota’s OC. The former Rams staffer followed head coach Kevin O’Connell to the Vikings in his first coordinator opportunity. The team ranked top 10 in total and scoring offense last year, though it has taken a step back in both categories in 2023. Improvement could be coming soon with wideout Justin Jefferson set to return on Sunday, however.
Here are some other coaching notes out of the NFC:
- Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy had surgery for acute appendicitis earlier this week, threatening to keep him sidelined for Dallas’ upcoming divisional clash against the Eagles. It was announced at the time he intended to coach as usual, though, and that will indeed be the case. Owner Jerry Jones confirmed (via ESPN’s Todd Archer) McCarthy and Co. will be “business as usual” for tomorrow’s crucial matchup of NFC contenders.
- Returning to Minnesota, Vikings D-line coach Chris Rumph has departed the team to take a college position. Clemson announced this week Rumph has joined the team’s staff under the title of assistant head coach/defensive ends. The 51-year-old took a leave of absence from the Vikings in October, and he will now return to the Tigers after coaching with them from 2006-10. Vikings assistant defensive line coach Pat Hill has filled in for Rumph during his absence, along with assistant head coach Mike Pettine and defensive coordinator Brian Flores, Seifert notes. That arrangement will likely continue for the rest of the season with Rumph’s future now clear.
NFC East Notes: Eagles, Leonard, Cowboys, Giants, Commanders, Del Rio
Shaquille Leonard‘s free agency decision brought additional intrigue due to its NFC East-only nature, and Jerry Jones said during an interview with 105.3 The Fan (h/t The Athletic’s Jon Machota) the chase did not come down to money. The Colts still owe Leonard $6.1MM guaranteed for the rest of this year. The sixth-year linebacker will collect $416K in prorated base salary from the Eagles, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. That checks in above the veteran minimum, and Yates adds the Eagles included a $100K incentive and $17K per game in roster bonuses.
Leonard played 2 1/2 seasons on a five-year, $98.5MM accord — one that topped the ILB market until the Ravens’ Roquan Smith deal earlier this year — but saw two 2022 back surgeries impact his career. Visiting both the Cowboys and Eagles (ahead of the NFC East powers’ rematch Sunday), Leonard said (via AllPhly.com’s Zach Berman) his bond with Nick Sirianni played a key role in the Eagles choice. Sirianni was the Colts’ OC from 2018-20, Leonard’s first three NFL seasons (all of which resulted in All-Pro honors). He will attempt to recapture that form ahead of another free agency run in 2024.
Here is the latest from the NFC East:
- Mike McCarthy underwent surgery Wednesday for acute appendicitis, the Cowboys announced. The fourth-year Dallas HC is planning to be on the sidelines Sunday night, and NFL.com’s Jane Slater adds the surgery was successful. Dan Quinn, Brian Schottenheimer and ST coordinator John Fassel will run Cowboys practices while McCarthy is away, per ESPN.com’s Todd Archer.
- The Eagles are on track to have Dallas Goedert back against the Cowboys, the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff McLane notes. Goedert, who suffered a broken forearm during this season’s initial Philly-Dallas matchup, underwent surgery soon after that Nov. 5 matchup and has missed the Eagles’ past three games. The Eagles kept their top tight end off IR, in hopes he could come back before the four-week span. Goedert practiced fully Wednesday. Zach Cunningham logged a limited workout, but McLane notes that, in addition to Leonard, the Eagles should have Cunningham ready to go. The summer signee-turned-starter missed Week 13 with a hamstring injury.
- Despite having an experienced quarterback ready to go for Week 14, the Giants are sticking with rookie UDFA Tommy DeVito. Expressing disappointment over that choice, Tyrod Taylor confirmed (via the New York Daily News’ Pat Leonard) he broke four ribs, which required a hospital trip. The Giants are not expected to re-sign Taylor in 2024, per the New York Post’s Ryan Dunleavy. During Taylor’s IR stay, it began to look unlikely the 34-year-old veteran — who is playing out a two-year, $11MM deal — would be back in 2024. DeVito will now attempt an audition for the backup job, though it is not certain Daniel Jones will be ready for the 2024 opener. The Giants also will probably be linked to first-round passers, setting up a complicated offseason.
- The Commanders ranked in the top seven in points and yards allowed last season, but they did not extend DC Jack Del Rio‘s contract, according to ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler and John Keim. Del Rio, who followed Ron Rivera to Washington in 2020, went into a walk year this season. While that is far more common in the coordinator ranks than a head coach becoming a lame duck, it left staffers uncertain, according to ESPN. Due to the Dan Snyder-to-Josh Harris ownership transition, the Commanders did not extend most of their other assistants’ contracts after last season. Rivera said this offseason the team had big-picture matters on hold for a stretch while the NFL reviewed Harris’ bid. Rivera fired Del Rio and DBs coach Brent Vieselmeyer following a Thanksgiving Day Cowboys romp, though the head coach is widely expected to be canned at season’s end.
Is Bill Belichick To Dallas A Real Possibility?
We’ve written quite a bit lately on the struggles of the Patriots and the possibility of the franchise and head coach Bill Belichick parting ways. We’ve even explored quite a few options to take up the reigns in New England, should that change take place. But what about the future for Belichick? 
In the lengthy FMIA published by Peter King of NBC Sports on a weekly basis, King floated a couple of ideas of where Belichick may land. The first option, King throws into the ring is Dallas. It may seem difficult to picture the Cowboys letting go of current head coach Mike McCarthy as they currently sit at 8-3, tied for the second-best record in the NFL and the fifth seed in the NFC, but King lays down a scenario in which he could see a fed up Jerry Jones move on to new leadership.
King thinks that the Cowboys have to lose their division, have a questionable showing or two down the stretch of the regular season, and go winless in the playoffs. They’re currently two games back of the division-leading Eagles with one head-to-head loss and a home matchup remaining against their division-rival, so that one’s not unlikely, though still up in the air.
As for the likelihood of the questionable showings, the Cowboys already have a loss to the Kyler Murray-less Cardinals and are 0-2 against teams with a winning record. The remainder of their schedule sees them encounter matchups with the Seahawks (6-5), Eagles, (9-1), Bills (6-5), Dolphins (8-3), and Lions (8-3). There are plenty of opportunities down the stretch for the Cowboys to lay an egg or two against a good team.
Finally, the Cowboys are no strangers to playoff heartbreak. In the past two seasons, they’ve ended the regular season 12-5 but have gone a combined 1-2 in the playoffs of those years. Combine that with the fact that Dallas has failed to make it out of the Divisional round of the playoffs every year since they won the Super Bowl in 1995, and it’s not hard to imagine the possibility of a winless postseason this year.
Of course, Cowboys fans do not want to focus on any of this. They are sitting at 8-3 riding high after a 45-10 dismantling of the Commanders. They have three prime-time games coming up in a five-game stretch that will prove to be a strong litmus test as to the team’s status as a contender. They’re focused on proving that Dallas is the real deal in the coming weeks and would likely shun the idea of entertaining a rumor like this.
Unfortunately, the likelihood of the scenario that King proposes is still a non-zero number. If that scenario plays out, those same fans may be calling for McCarthy’s head and rejoicing the prospect of bringing in a legend like Belichick, despite his current 2-8 record and his 27-34 record since Tom Brady left New England.
King also points out that, while it seems unlikely that a control freak like Belichick would ever want to work under a control freak like Jones, many thought the same of legendary coach Bill Parcells, whom Jones once coached out of a second retirement in order to coach the ‘Boys back in 2003. Regardless, lots will still need to play out before any of this becomes a possibility, but that doesn’t mean it’s completely out of the realm of possibility.
Cowboys’ Jerry Jones Endorses QB Dak Prescott, HC Mike McCarthy
The Cowboys are set to play the final game of Week 6 tonight, a contest against the Chargers which will be the team’s first opportunity to rebound from their lopsided loss to the 49ers last Sunday. Questions have been raised regarding Dallas’ offense in particular, but owner Jerry Jones remains confident in the unit.
During a regular appearance on 105.3 The Fan, Jones acknowledged the poor showing on the Cowboys’ part in their 42-10 loss. The performance did not, however, give him reason to consider taking play-calling duties away from head coach Mike McCarthy or doubts about quarterback Dak Prescott‘s standing as Dallas’ undisputed starter.
“We have, in my mind — make no mistake about it — we have a quarterback that can get us there,” Jones said, via Fox Sports’ Ralph Vacchiano. “I feel very strongly there. [And] we have coaching on both sides of the ball that can get us there.”
Monday will be a noteworthy contest not only given the Cowboys’ aim to bounce back on offense, but the fact that the Chargers have Kellen Moore at the helm of their offense. The latter was let go this offseason after four years as Dallas’ offensive coordinator, a stretch during which the team led the league in scoring twice. That decision paved the way for McCarthy to take on play-calling duties, and he has enjoyed mixed results so far. The Cowboys have had a strong rushing attack, something which has helped them rank sixth in the league in points per game, but struggles through the air have the team sitting only 19th in total offense.
In spite of that, Jones confirmed that no consideration has been given to taking play-calling duties away from McCarthy and handing them to new OC Brian Schottenheimer. That represents the latest vote of confidence in McCarthy, who has routinely faced questions about his job security in the wake of postseason disappointments over the past two years. Both he and Prescott have the full backing of Jones moving forward.
“I’m saying that it’s capable of being there,” the latter added when asked further about the offense. “Since Kellen Moore left, have we gotten this team in a place that can do better than we did against the 49ers? You bet we have. Should we change at this juncture back to where we were last year? No, we should not.”
Jerry Jones Addresses Dak Prescott Contract; No Extension Talks Yet
The Cowboys restructuring Dak Prescott‘s contract this offseason gives their longtime quarterback some ammo. The reworking created a whopping $59.5MM Prescott cap number in 2024, the final year of his current deal. Already limited by the events of 2021 with Dak, the Cowboys have some work to do going forward.
Taking parts of three offseasons to agree to an extension, Prescott ended up playing his hand well. His price rose from 2019-21, and talks ended up coming down to the March 2021 deadline for teams to apply franchise tags. With Prescott having already been tagged in 2020, the 2021 number would have brought a cap sheet-clogging $37MM hit. As that deadline approached, the Cowboys hammered out a four-year, $160MM extension with the former Offensive Rookie of the Year. The fallout from that extension affects the team today.
Because the Cowboys applied a procedural tag on Prescott in 2021, it would be untenable for them to tag him a third time in 2025. While two years remain on Prescott’s deal, the 2024 cap number and the tag being out of play will equip him with considerable leverage. For now, however, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Clarence Hill notes the Cowboys and Dak have not linked up on extension talks. An extension would allow the team to reduce Prescott’s monster 2024 cap number.
The topic of a second Prescott extension surfaced this offseason, but the Cowboys had more pressing matters to address. They have taken care of those, giving Zack Martin a raise and adding more than $35MM guaranteed to end his holdout. They also extended Trevon Diggs, Terence Steele and Malik Hooker to prevent them from going into contract years. CeeDee Lamb looms as an extension priority as well, but he is signed through 2024. Micah Parsons certainly will be, too. The all-world pass rusher becomes extension-eligible in January but can be kept on his rookie deal through 2025 due to the fifth-year option the Cowboys will exercise by May.
Dallas also made a surprising trade for Trey Lance, with Hill adding Jerry Jones pulled the trigger without consulting Prescott or Mike McCarthy. Jones said the Lance trade did not come to pass because of a potential leverage ploy against Prescott, via The Athletic’s Jon Machota (subscription required), and added he wants the current starter in Dallas for a long time. Prescott, 30, declined to comment on prospective contract talks, via the Dallas Morning News’ Calvin Watkins, adding he was not surprised by the Lance acquisition. The former No. 3 overall pick is not expected to play this season, with Hill adding Lance could compete with the recently re-signed Cooper Rush for that job in 2024. Rush is now on a two-year deal.
While Lance counts only $940K on Dallas’ cap sheet this year, that number spikes to $5.31MM in 2024. Prescott’s 2024 number will need to be addressed, as no player has entered a season with a cap hit higher than $45MM. The Browns are in the same boat, though theirs is a bit trickier due to Deshaun Watson‘s 2024-26 cap numbers (all at $63.97MM) part of a fully guaranteed contract. Two void years are on Prescott’s deal. It would cost the Cowboys $36.5MM were they to not extend Prescott before the start of the 2025 league year.
The NFL’s Longest-Tenured Head Coaches
After the 2022 offseason produced 10 new head coaches, this one brought a step back in terms of turnover. Five teams changed HCs, though each conducted thorough searches — four of them lasting until at least January 31.
The Colts and Cardinals hired their HCs after Super Bowl LVII, plucking the Eagles’ offensive and defensive coordinators (Shane Steichen, Jonathan Gannon). The Cardinals were hit with a tampering penalty regarding their Gannon search. Conducting their second HC search in two years, the Broncos saw multiple candidates drop out of the running. But Denver’s new ownership group convinced Sean Payton to step out of the FOX studio and back onto the sidelines after just one season away. The Panthers made this year’s first hire (Frank Reich), while the Texans — running their third HC search in three years — finalized an agreement with DeMeco Ryans minutes after the Payton news broke.
Only one of last year’s top 10 longest-tenured HCs lost his job. A turbulent Colts year led to Reich being fired barely a year after he signed an extension. During a rather eventful stretch, Jim Irsay said he reluctantly extended Reich in 2021. The Colts passed on giving interim HC Jeff Saturday the full-time position, despite Irsay previously indicating he hoped the former center would transition to that role. Reich landed on his feet, and after losing Andrew Luck to a shocking retirement just before his second Colts season, the well-regarded play-caller now has another No. 1 pick (Bryce Young) to mentor.
After considering a Rams exit, Sean McVay recommitted to the team and is overseeing a reshaped roster. Andy Reid also sidestepped retirement rumors, staying on with the Chiefs after his second Super Bowl win. This will be Reid’s 25th season as an NFL head coach.
Here is how the 32 HC jobs look for the 2023 season:
- Bill Belichick (New England Patriots): January 27, 2000
- Mike Tomlin (Pittsburgh Steelers): January 27, 2007; extended through 2024
- John Harbaugh (Baltimore Ravens): January 19, 2008; extended through 2025
- Pete Carroll (Seattle Seahawks): January 9, 2010; extended through 2025
- Andy Reid (Kansas City Chiefs): January 4, 2013; extended through 2025
- Sean McDermott (Buffalo Bills): January 11, 2017; extended through 2027
- Sean McVay (Los Angeles Rams): January 12, 2017; extended through 2023
- Kyle Shanahan (San Francisco 49ers): February 6, 2017; extended through 2025
- Mike Vrabel (Tennessee Titans): January 20, 2018; signed extension in February 2022
- Matt LaFleur (Green Bay Packers): January 8, 2019: signed extension in July 2022
- Zac Taylor (Cincinnati Bengals): February 4, 2019; extended through 2026
- Ron Rivera (Washington Commanders): January 1, 2020
- Mike McCarthy (Dallas Cowboys): January 7, 2020
- Kevin Stefanski (Cleveland Browns): January 13, 2020
- Robert Saleh (New York Jets): January 15, 2021
- Arthur Smith (Atlanta Falcons): January 15, 2021
- Brandon Staley (Los Angeles Chargers): January 17, 2021
- Dan Campbell (Detroit Lions): January 20, 2021
- Nick Sirianni (Philadelphia Eagles): January 21, 2021
- Matt Eberflus (Chicago Bears): January 27, 2022
- Brian Daboll (New York Giants): January 28, 2022
- Josh McDaniels (Las Vegas Raiders): January 30, 2022
- Kevin O’Connell (Minnesota Vikings): February 2, 2022
- Doug Pederson (Jacksonville Jaguars): February 3, 2022
- Mike McDaniel (Miami Dolphins): February 6, 2022
- Dennis Allen (New Orleans Saints): February 7, 2022
- Todd Bowles (Tampa Bay Buccaneers): March 30, 2022
- Frank Reich (Carolina Panthers): January 26, 2023
- Sean Payton (Denver Broncos): January 31, 2023
- DeMeco Ryans (Houston Texans): January 31, 2023
- Shane Steichen (Indianapolis Colts): February 14, 2023
- Jonathan Gannon (Arizona Cardinals): February 14, 2023
Cowboys Didn’t Offer Pay Cut To Ezekiel Elliott; Team Still Open To New Deal
The Cowboys have made a number of high-profile additions so far in free agency, but the 2023 offseason has also included the team’s release of Ezekiel Elliott. The former rushing champion was long expected to be a cap casualty, but the chances of a re-worked contract keeping him in Dallas have fluctuated recently. 
Elliott admitted earlier this year that he was willing to accept a pay cut to continue his Cowboys career. That came as little surprise, given the $16.7MM he was scheduled to count against the cap in 2023, and the lack of guaranteed money remaining on his contract. Dallas already has one notable cap figure at the running back position with Tony Pollard having been franchise tagged.
Days after Elliott was released, it was reported that a Cowboys reunion was unlikely. As the former top-five pick faces the prospect of free agency for the first time, however, no new, more modest contract offer has emerged yet from Dallas. Executive vice president Stephen Jones recently elaborated on the reason why that is the case.
“When you’ve got players and we’ve had them over the years, whether it’s Emmitt Smith, whether it’s a DeMarcus Ware these type of players you’ve got such respect for everything that they’ve done for your organization,” he said, via Clarence Hill Jr. of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “Sometimes the best thing is to let them get a feel for what the market is. The last thing we want to do is do anything that would be insulting to a great player like Zeke.”
Elliott, 27, is a member of a deep free agent class at the position, one which has not landed much in the way of lucrative deals on the open market. Considering his decline in production, including career-worst numbers in 2022, it comes as little surprise that the Ohio State alum isn’t facing a plethora of suitors. Elliott reportedly has a three-team wish list of destinations (Eagles, Bengals and Jets), but it very much remains to be seen if his interest in those squads will be reciprocated.
While Dallas has yet to submit a new offer to Elliott, they still could down the road. At the league meetings earlier this week, head coach Mike McCarthy confirmed that the door “definitely” remains open to Elliott being brought back at a reduced rate (h/t NFL.com’s Kevin Patra). The Cowboys currently sit at $13.3MM in cap space, so a reunion with Elliott could be feasible if the cost were to be low enough.
Changes in Elliott’s market could of course steer him more definitively towards, or away from, the Cowboys in the near future. For now, though, it remains clear that Dallas is content to let the rest of the league dictate the value on his next contract as he eyes a likely change in role for the next phase of his career.
Cowboys Eyeing Another Dak Prescott Extension, Likely To Use Franchise Tag
Finalized at the March 2021 deadline for teams to apply franchise tags to players, Dak Prescott‘s four-year, $160MM deal remains one of the league’s most player-friendly agreements. The Cowboys have twice restructured it, and the contract calls for a whopping cap number this year.
Prescott is tied to a $49.13MM figure. No player has ever played on a cap number north of $46MM, though Deshaun Watson ($54.9MM) is on track to venture into unexplored territory after his outlier extension is set to spike on the Browns’ payroll. The Cowboys can create more cap space — up to $22MM — by restructuring Prescott’s pact for a third time, but executive VP Stephen Jones took it a step further.
“We’ve got to have a plan to ultimately extend Dak,” Jones said, via ESPN.com’s Todd Archer. “… I’ve got all the faith in the world we can win this thing with Dak. We know what he’s about. His leadership skills are undeniable. Impeccable work ethic. Other than he hadn’t won some key playoff games, he’s everything you want in a quarterback.”
This will be Prescott’s eighth season at the controls for the Cowboys and his age-30 campaign. The team has gone to the increasingly popular void-years well with its quarterback, whose cap hit jumps to $52.1MM in 2024. It does not sound like the Cowboys plan on having him attached to his current contract by that point.
Prescott and the Cowboys negotiated this contract over three offseasons, beginning when he became extension-eligible in 2019 to the March 2021 accord. The complex process ended up benefitting Prescott, who saw the 2020 team crater without him. With this offseason potentially set to break down the $50MM barrier — via possible extensions for Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert, Lamar Jackson and Jalen Hurts — Prescott stands to be in good position when it comes time to discuss what will be his third Cowboys contract.
A 17-start season in 2023 would match Prescott with Roger Staubach for third in Cowboys history among QBs — behind Troy Aikman (165) and Tony Romo (127) — and although Dallas has continually encountered playoff roadblocks, it does not seem like any wavering is taking place. Mike McCarthy will now take over the Prescott-piloted offense.
Jones said the fourth-year Cowboys HC “made a compelling argument that making him the play-caller was going to help us.” Jones foresees a “noticeable change” in the Cowboys’ offense, which stood as DVOA’s No. 1-ranked unit during Prescott’s most recent full season (2021). Initially described as a mutual parting, the Cowboys-Kellen Moore split appears closer to a firing. Moore, who stayed on as the Cowboys’ play-caller during McCarthy’s first three seasons, is now with the Chargers. It will be interesting to see what changes McCarthy, who resided as the Packers’ play-caller for most of his 12-season Green Bay tenure, introduces.
Additionally, it looks like the Cowboys will unholster their franchise tag for a sixth straight offseason. After tagging DeMarcus Lawrence in 2018 and ’19, the Cowboys cuffed Prescott in 2020 and ’21 (the latter year a procedural move). They kept Dalton Schultz off the market last year. While Schultz can be re-tagged for barely $13MM, Tony Pollard is viewed as the team’s most likely tag recipient this year. Jones said (via Archer) the team will “probably use [the tag] again this year.” It would cost Dallas $10.1MM to tag Pollard, who joins Saquon Barkley and Josh Jacobs as running back tag candidates.
The Cowboys are $7MM-plus over the cap, as of Monday night, so they will need to get to work on cost-clearing moves and restructures soon to create space for a tag and reasonable free agency activity. Moving Prescott’s number down should take center stage in the coming days.
Cowboys Promote Brian Schottenheimer To OC
The Cowboys’ search for a new offensive coordinator has ended in unsurprising fashion. The team announced on Saturday that Brian Schottenheimer has been promoted to the OC position. 
Dallas parted ways with Kellen Moore after he had guided their offense for the past four seasons. That stretch included three seasons of high-end production in the regular season with a healthy Dak Prescott under center, but reports have since emerged citing strife between Moore (who has since landed with the Chargers) and head coach Mike McCarthy after the Cowboys’ season came to an end with an underwhelming loss to the 49ers for the second straight year.
With the latter set to handle play-calling duties, Dallas’ search for Moore’s successor ended up being rather brief. It was reported earlier this week that Schottenheimer would be a name to watch for the position, given his experience with the team and serving as an OC elsewhere around the NFL. The 49-year-old worked with the Cowboys as an offensive consultant in 2022, but has helped guide the offenses of the Jets, Rams and Seahawks previously.
“I am very happy to have Brian take on this key role with our team,” McCarthy said in a statement, via the team’s website. “He has been an important part of our staff already and has a great grasp of where we are and where we want to go.
“Brian has an exceptionally strong foundation, history and relationships beyond his time here that translates very well into understanding what our approach to operating and executing will be for the future. This will be an exciting and efficient transition for us that I am confident will help yield the growth and results we all want and expect.”
Schottenheimer will take on an increased role from his previous capacity in Dallas, looking to improve a unit which ranked fourth in scoring in the NFL last season. Uncertainty remains regarding their backfield tandem of Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard, while additions are expected to be made in the pass-catching corps. Of course, Schottenheimer, McCarthy and the rest of the staff will principally be judged by their performance in the postseason as the post-Moore era begins on offense.