Cowboys Retain Mike McCarthy, Stephen A. Smith Sounds Off

Despite a blowout loss to Green Bay in the NFL playoffs, the Cowboys have chosen to retain Mike McCarthy as their head coach. "I believe that the direction, the leadership, everything is in place. And I'm not very comfortable talking about myself, but I came here to win a championship. I didn't come here to get another contract or anything other than that. I came to Dallas to win a world championship, and that's why I'm standing here. Buy into us," McCarthy said in a press conference.

However, the decision makes 2024 an all-or-nothing year for the team. In four years under McCarthy, the team has three playoff appearances but just one playoff win. They have posted three consecutive 12-5 seasons but are still yet to reach the conference championship game for the first time since 1995. While Dak Prescott had a career year and was named Second Team All-Pro, the Cowboys continue to collapse when it matters most. Of course, Stephen A. Smith had a lot to say about the decision as well, going off on a loud rant during First Take.

Seahawks Outline Head Coach Search Mentality

Meanwhile, on the other side of the country, the Seahawks outlined what is driving their head coach search. GM John Schneider has said that team ownership has just one directive for his first-ever head coaching search - keep the team's "positive culture". "It's clear. It's concise. We want to keep our positive culture, everything that's been created here. There's so many special people in this building. It's amazing to be on the phone with all these agents and the people that are interested in this position and to be able to explain to them, 'Hey, there's a foundation here that's incredible,'" Schneider said in his first comments since Pete Carroll was relieved of heading coaching duties after 14 years. Carrol was transitioned to an "advisor" role last week.

Furthermore, Schneider confirmed a change alluded to by Carroll in is final press conference. Schneider, as GM, will have the final say on personnel hires. Previously, Carroll was responsible for his own staff and reported directly to team owner Jody Allen. "Our setup earlier was ... the coaching staff did not fall under my umbrella, and now it will. It's not necessarily a Jody Allen decision or choosing this person or that person; it's just a contractual situation," Schneider noted.

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