Cowboys' Stephen Jones Says Mike McCarthy 'Absolutely' Will Be DAL's HC in 2021

Dallas Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones affirmed the franchise's commitment to head coach Mike McCarthy, telling reporters Monday the team "absolutely, unequivocally" remains behind the first-year Cowboy.

"We like stability," Jones said. "Thats why we stayed with Jason [Garrett] for 10 years."

Jerry Jones asserted his authority shortly after purchasing the Cowboys in 1989, firing legendary head coach Tom Landry and installing Jimmy Johnson in the role. That didn't portend Jones' approach toward his coaches, though.

The Cowboys have had eight head coaches under his watch. Only two have occupied the role for fewer than three years: McCarthy and Chan Gailey (1998-99).

Stephen Jones referenced how Dallas stuck with Garrett for 10 seasons despite some calling for him to be fired well before his departure in January.

This has been a disastrous year for Dallas, which is 2-7 after having just passed the halfway mark. McCarthy isn't solely to blame for that since Dak Prescott's ankle injury was the team's single biggest setback and probably enough on its own to derail a playoff quest.

Having said that, NFL Network's Jane Slater reported a level of frustration toward McCarthy was already beginning to build among some players:

McCarthy downplayed any drama behind the scenes before the Cowboys suffered an embarrassing 25-3 defeat to the Washington Football Team.

A vote of confidence can occasionally be the kiss of death. When an owner or general manager has to publicly back his coach, it generally speaks to what has become a tenuous situation.

Jerry Jones threw his support behind Garrett last December and indicated he'd be back at the helm in 2020, only to reverse course the following month.

If history is any indicator, McCarthy should feel relatively confident he'll get more than one season.