5 reasons the Cowboys will beat the Packers in Week 10
By Randy Gurzi
4. McCarthy, historically good after the bye week, wants this one
Mike McCarthy is in his 16th season as an NFL head coach and he’s typically been very good after the bye week. In fact, his teams have shown vast improvements down the stretch as he was 75-52 in each game after the break while with the Packers. In Dallas, he was 7-4 after the bye in 2021 and 4-3 the prior season with Prescott out.
Having said all of that, the number that matters this week is what his record is for that first game when his team returns from the bye. McCarthy stands out there as well, with a 10-5 record while not getting a shot in 2018 due to being let go.
McCarthy’s two post-bye games for Dallas have also been wins. The most popular was against Minnesota in 2021, which was the game where Cooper Rush made his first career start. The year before that, they also beat the Vikings after the bye, that time with Andy Dalton under center.
As impressive as he’s been with the extra time, there’s also motivation at play. This will be the first time McCarthy faces his old team and he opened up about what it will mean for him.
Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy was asked today what he and his family miss most about Green Bay. Cowboys play at Packers this Sunday. Video via @dallascowboys. pic.twitter.com/6v9ofFBwP8
— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) November 7, 2022
Reporters continued to ask the head coach about his return and McCarthy got emotional when speaking about it. Clearly, he loved being a part of that city and enjoyed winning in Lambeau.
This weekend, he’ll get a chance to not only stick it to his former employers, and help bury them in 2022, but he can again taste victory in the stadium he once called home.