Cowboys’ Micah Parsons on Mike McCarthy exit: ‘It’s devastating’

As the Dallas Cowboys seek a new head coach in the wake of parting ways with Mike McCarthy, arguably their best player is crushed.

“I’m obviously very sad because of the relationships we had with Coach McCarthy and everything he’s done for our program,” star linebacker Micah Parsonssaid on his podcast “The Edge with Micah Parsons.” “Three straight 12-5 seasons, playoff appearances and obviously an unfortunate year due to injuries. … It is devastating.

“Coach Mike is a great father, great coach. One of the most winningest coaches. He’s always been good to us as a unit, coaches, players. Losing a great coach like Mike hurts.”

The Cowboys went 7-10 this season and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2020, in large part because quarterback Dak Prescott suffered a season-ending hamstring injury in Week 8.

Across McCarthy’s five seasons in Dallas, the Cowboys went a combined 49-35 in the regular season and 1-3 in the postseason. They won 12 games in three consecutive seasons (2021-23), won the NFC East twice (2021 and 2023) and missed the playoffs twice (2020 and 2024).

Prior to being hired by the Cowboys, McCarthy was the head coach of the Green Bay Packers from 2006-18, posting a 125-77-2 regular-season record and 10-8 postseason record. His time in Green Bay is highlighted by the franchise winning Super Bowl XLV. McCarthy ranks 13th in NFL history with 174 combined wins as a head coach.

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As for Parsons, the fourth-year linebacker totaled 12.0 sacks, 43.0 combined tackles and two forced fumbles in 13 games this season. He missed four games due to an ankle injury. Parsons is a two-time All-Pro and has earned Pro Bowl honors in each of his four seasons in the NFL.

Dallas boasted one of the league’s best defenses under defensive coordinator Dan Quinn from 2021-23, finishing no worse than seventh in opponent points per game in each of those three seasons. However, Quinn left Dallas to become the new head coach of the Washington Commanders last offseason, with the Cowboys hiring former Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer as DC.

The Cowboys defense struggled under Zimmer, surrendering 218.1 passing yards (17th in the NFL), 137.1 rushing yards (29th), 355.2 total yards (28th) and 27.5 points (31st) per game.

Parsons, who’s entering the final season of his rookie deal, expressed that he has “trust” in the Cowboys to make the right head-coaching hire. Colorado Buffaloes head coach and former Cowboys star cornerback Deion Sanders, Philadelphia Eagles and former Cowboys offensive coordinator Kellen Moore and former Cowboys star tight end Jason Witten are among the reported candidates to replace McCarthy.

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