With Super Bowl victory on his résumé, new Cowboys boss McCarthy has players’ attention
FRISCO — The two didn’t have a chance to sit down immediately. A pandemic and contract negotiations kept getting in the way.
Once Mike McCarthy and Dak Prescott finally got together, once the new head coach of the Cowboys let his guard down and the two got to know each other, the groundwork was laid.
“We talked about his history,” Prescott said. “We had a conversation that first in-person meeting over lunch, and it was about that, where he comes from. Him starting at Pitt and working his way up the charts and becoming the head coach of the Green Bay Packers and obviously getting the opportunity to come here.
”It’s something he’s very open about. He talks about what he knows and what he’s learned, good or bad, from the past and how that’s going to benefit us as a team. That’s just one of those things that’s so genuine about him.
“He’s a guy’s guy.”
Jason Garrett forged meaningful relationships with the players in his time as Cowboys head coach. He was meticulous and methodical in how he went about it.
McCarthy seems to have a more casual approach in the early days of his tenure. He comes across as conversational where Garrett often came across as corporate.
Garrett is the crisp white dress shirt that hangs neatly at the front of the closet.
McCarthy is the slightly wrinkled plaid shirt that you grab off the hanger and wear untucked.
Mike Nolan was the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers in 2005. McCarthy was his offensive coordinator. Now, Nolan finds himself part of McCarthy’s staff in Dallas as the defensive coordinator.
When offered the position, he estimates, he took approximately one second to accept.
“I think he’s very down to earth,” Nolan said. “He’s very real. I think the players can relate to him. He talks their language.
“He’s very straightforward. He tells it like it is. He doesn’t beat around the bush. He’s got a great plan. He’s very successful.
“I mean, there’s a ton of great things about Mike McCarthy. And to be honest with you, I’m enjoying this as much as any time as I’ve ever coached.”
Ha Ha Clinton-Dix played for McCarthy in Green Bay. The safety has told his new teammates what to expect.
McCarthy is a players’ coach. He takes care of them in practice and makes sure they will be at their best on game day.
He’s approachable.
“I love coach McCarthy,” defensive lineman Tyrone Crawford said. “I love how he handles his team. I love the team meetings and just his interactions with us.
”It’s been great to get to know him better.“
The restrictions that come with COVID-19 delayed the introduction. The players saw McCarthy virtually, but that’s different than getting a feel for how he runs practice, how he interacts with them when they bump into each other in the hallway or walking off the practice field.
”If it’s a time where he jokes, he’ll joke,“Crawford said. ”If it’s a time where he needs to be serious, we get the serious out of him. Every time it’s appropriate.
“I’ve never seen him step out of line with anybody man to man. He’s a very respectful and really good coach.”
The players know McCarthy has a Super Bowl title to his name. He picked it up at AT&T Stadium. His success has gotten their attention.
“For us, we haven’t had that success in the highest level in professional sports,” linebacker Jaylon Smith said. “We can learn. Coach McCarthy, he’s still learning, he’s still growing, he’s adapting.
”I’m just thankful to have him as a coach.“
Nolan loves McCarthy. He considers him a brother.
He also considers him an outstanding coach.
”Every day when he’s in front of the team and all, I get real — I was going to say I get a kick out of watching him, but it’s really not a kick,“Nolan said. ”I’m glad I’m working for him. I really am. I think he does an outstanding job.
“He does as good a job in front of the football team as any coach I’ve ever been associated with, and I’ve been with a few Hall of Famers.”
McCarthy’s response? “I would say first, Mike really knows what he’s talking about,” he said.
That’s it. There’s a glimpse of what the players like about McCarthy as they get to know him.
It goes back to Crawford’s observation. McCarthy has a good feel for when to joke and when to get down to business with this team in the early stages.
“He’s great,” Prescott said. “He demands excellence. He demands your effort, and he’s a very genuine guy.
”I think when you’re genuine with your players as much as he is and the whole staff is, it goes a long way. Guys want to go out there and practice for him. Guys want to give their all every chance that we get.
“He’s a players’ coach, and he’s done really well gaining the love and the trust of the players here in the locker room.”
McCarthy gives a long list of coaches he’s learned from through the years. But he quickly adds it’s not just what he learns from them. Every bit as important is what he learns from the players. The key in assimilating traits you admire is to never lose sight of who you are.
“I think coaching is so much about being yourself,” McCarthy said. “I’ve never tried to be somebody else.
”You always learn so much from the players. It’s a constant message today that I continue to bang home with the younger coaches. The interactions of those conversations that you have, it brings clarity to the gray area, and ultimately it’s our job to eliminate the gray area.
“I’ve just been very fortunate in my experiences.”
Funny. Prescott uses the same word when talking about McCarthy.
“We’re very fortunate to have him,” the quarterback said, “and excited about where he’s going to take us.”