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The Dallas Cowboys have endured a brutal 2024 season, blighted by an injury to their star quarterback Dak Prescott. A campaign that began with Super Bowl hopes has disintegrated into a disaster -- typified by a humiliating special teams gaffe that cost the Cowboys a win against the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday Night Football.
The 27-20 loss to Cincinnati was broadcast on ESPN, and called by the commentary duo of Joe Buck and Troy Aikman. As one of the Cowboys' greatest-ever players, Aikman -- a quarterback with three Super Bowls to his name -- has a unique understanding of the dynamics at play in Dallas, where longtime owner Jerry Jones has the last word on all personnel matters. As the Cowboys slipped to 5-8 on Monday, Aikman lodged a prediction about the future at AT&T Stadium that could rock some of Dallas' ionate fans right to the core.
Aikman thinks Mike McCarthy will return in 2025
Jones, who purchased the Cowboys in 1989, has teased fans about the team's plans for 2025, specifically over the head coaching position. The much-maligned Mike McCarthy does not have a contract once the 2024 season ends; in response, the Cowboys have been linked to Bill Belichick and their former player Deion Sanders as potential replacements.
But with Belichick pursuing the University of North Carolina job and Sanders likely to stay at Colorado, Aikman believes the Cowboys' path forward is the one of least resistance.
"I sense that it's a team that really believes in Mike McCarthy. I feel the locker room wants him back. I think he's a really good football coach. I believe Jerry Jones thinks he's a really good football coach, too," Aikman told 105.3 The Fan radio in Dallas on Monday. "As we stand and talk right now, I expect Mike McCarthy to be back in 2025."
Aikman's bold prediction might upset plenty of fans of "America's Team", but Jones is not one to pursue an inexperienced coach or take a gamble on an up-and-coming candidate. Unless the 82-year-old has a sudden change of heart, McCarthy does have to be considered an option to lead the Cowboys in 2025 -- with Prescott's season-ending injury giving him the perfect "excuse" for Dallas' deeply-disappointing 2024 campaign.