Cowboys' Dak Prescott subtly admits that Jerry Jones screwed Mike McCarthy

If nothing else, the Dallas Cowboys have made the last five games of the year interesting. There's something to be said for that given they were 3-8 not too long ago. While the playoffs remain a pipe dream, there is suddenly discourse about Mike McCarthy potentially saving his job.

Jerry Jones stirred the pot last week on 105.3 The Fan when he said "crazier things have happened" than giving McCarthy an extension.

That came after Cowboys legend Troy Aikman gave McCarthy a loud endorsement while calling Monday Night Football for ESPN. Another legendary quarterback - Tom Brady - followed Aikman's lead on Thanksgiving, calling McCarthy a "great coach" and "leader of men."

While Jones might not care much for Brady's input, he absolutely cares what Aikman thinks. Well, what about his current quarterback, Dak Prescott?

Prescott has defended McCarthy throughout his Dallas tenure. He echoed that to Jori Epstein of Yahoo Sports on Tuesday and stated he wants McCarthy back. What caught everyone's attention, though, was how the always-measured Prescott concluded that statement.

Dak Prescott wants Mike McCarthy to coach the Cowboys in 2025

"I believe in him wholeheartedly,” Prescott told Epstein. “I don’t want to necessarily get into the nuts and the screws of it all obviously, but I think he definitely deserves a chance — another contract and a chance to coach this team amongst more influence. ‘On his terms’ may be a good way to say it."

Cowboys fans know how calculated and cautious Prescott is when he speaks. Regardless of the subject matter, Dak knows whatever he says will generate headlines. That he said McCarthy deserves another year with the Cowboys "on his terms" is very, very noteworthy.

There could be two meanings behind that. Either Prescott understands that Dallas' injuries put McCarthy in an impossible position. Or, the front office intentionally sabotaged the 2024 season to get its salary cap ducks in a row.

It can't be argued that injuries derailed Dallas' season.

Beyond losing Prescott for the year, the team played without DaRon Bland for 10 games, Micah Parsons for four games, DeMarcus Lawrence for six games (and counting), Zack Martin and Trevon Diggs for two games and Brandin Cooks for five games. Not many teams would overcome losing that much high-end talent and the Cowboys were not equipped to do so. Not even close.

That brings us to the front office, which ranked dead-last with $20.13 million spent in the offseason, per Over The Cap. The Titans ranked first with $323.84 million (!) money spent and the Saints ranked 31st with $30.925 million. Dallas came in last all by themselves.

Even if the Cowboys managed to stay relatively healthy they were not winning 12 games again. The front office didn't do enough to improve at running back, nose tackle or wide receiver and started two new faces - both rookies - on the offensive line.

This all isn't to say that McCarthy has covered himself in glory as a head coach, but it has been apparent for a while that Jerry Jones viewed 2024 as a reset or "soft rebuild" before potentially going his version of "all-in" in 2025.

With all of the hurdles McCarthy has had to climb in 2024 - most courtesy of his own front office - Prescott isn't crazy to think he deserves another year.

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