What Micah Parsons wants to discuss with Jerry Jones while attending Cotton Bowl together :: The Athletic Link Parsons and Jones are planning to watch Friday’s Cotton Bowl together at AT&T Stadium. But it will be far from just a casual hang, if Parsons has his way. He says he’ll be grilling his boss on specific plans for bouncing back from a disappointing 2024. “I hope he asks me things, too,” Parsons added. “Jerry has always been so great to me in every aspect. It’s going to be great to talk to the guy that kind of believed in me first to see what the mission is and how we’re going to accomplish it to make us happy and really make the fans happy.” AT&T Stadium prepping for Cotton Bowl despite wintry forecast :: Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic Denied! Cowboys don’t grant Bears interview request for McCarthy, here’s what it could mean :: Cowboys Wire Link With McCarthy under contract until Jan. 14, the front office’s refusal to allow him to interview with Chicago suggested to some that a deal to keep him in Dallas must be in the works. But the team is under no obligation to let McCarthy speak with other teams, and they may well still be evaluating how they want to proceed. (They do have a track record of moving quite slowly in these things.) Cowboys, NFL Head Coaching Tracker: Update on Mike McCarthy, league openings :: Cowboys Wire Link From the three head coaching jobs that opened up during the season to the three that have popped up since, here’s the latest on who’s interviewing where and who’s staying put. Recent NFL firing should have Dallas Cowboys scheming a Plan B in case Mike Zimmer decides to retire :: A to Z Sports Link Even if the staff is retained in Dallas, there’s no guarantee Mike Zimmer returns. He’s admitted the year was hard on him, and Micah Parsons acknowledges his 68-year-old DC may “ride off into the sunset.” The Cowboys should keep an eye on Lou Anarumo, who was fired by Cincinnati on Monday, despite leading his Bengals unit to a strong season without several of his star players. Darnold, Mayfield, Goff QB success show Cowboys why coaches matter :: Cowboys Wire Link When deciding how to move forward with their head coaching position, the Cowboys should be mindful of who would make things easier for the most important player on the field. Quarterbacks like Sam Darnold, Baker Mayfield, and Jared Goff aren’t necessarily elite NFL talents, but they’ve risen to the top tier thanks to being paired with coaches who help them succeed rather than lean on them. Dak Prescott, someone who rates higher than all of those examples, stands to gain enormously if just put into a similar situation of supportive coaching. Cowboys LB DeMarvion Overshown confident in recovery from knee injury, expects 2025 return :: Dallas Morning News Link Overshown says he’ll attack his rehab aggressively and plans to make his return to the field sooner than has been theorized. After tearing three ligaments in his right knee, the linebacker saw reports that he could miss all of next season. “I’ll be back playing football for sure in 2025,” he said, “and it won’t be in December. It will be before that.” Turning doubt into dominance, Osa Odighizuwa continued to evolve in 2024 :: Cowboys Wire Link The 2021 third-round pick was thought to be on thin ice when Mike Zimmer came to town, but Odighizuwa exceeded expectations and may have even priced himself right out of Dallas with a stellar season. He cranked up his total pressures by nearly 40%, notched a career-high in sacks, and finished in the top five in QB hits and hurries. The question is no longer whether the former UCLA Bruin is a force—it’s whether Dallas can afford to keep him. Trey Lance on hand in Frisco as Bison win latest natty, celebrates with brother Bryce :: SI.com Link Approximately 24 hours after making his first start for the Cowboys, Lance was wearing North Dakota State gear as he watched his little brother Bryce win the FCS national championship. The Bison beat Montana State 35-32 in Frisco, with Bryce, a wide receiver, hauling in nine catches for 107 yards and a score. Trey also attended North Dakota State and played on two FCS championship squads himself. Cowboys fan favorite Bill Bates, struggling with post-concussion syndrome, still finds joy in football :: WFAA Link Widely regarded as one of the greatest special teams players in NFL history, Bates was honored Sunday as the Cowboys’ Legend of the Game. Now 63, Bates struggles with post-concussion syndrome. His cognitive abilities and communication skills are in decline, but the fan favorite certainly enjoyed returning for a visit with old friends and teammates. “I’m so blessed,” Bates said. “I’m so blessed.” Former Cowboys RB Ezekiel Elliott to sign with Los Angeles Chargers for playoff run :: Cowboys Wire Link Elliott was released so he could pursue an opportunity with a playoff contender. He’ll get that chance with the Chargers, who have a running backs room dealing with injuries. Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh likely remembers his newest ballcarrier well from their Big Ten days; Elliott posted 214 rushing yards and a pair of touchdowns in Ohio State’s 42-13 win over the Michigan Wolverines in 2015, Harbaugh’s first year in Ann Arbor. 2025 NFL mock draft: Reid’s predictions on first-round picks :: ESPN Link ESPN’s latest mock draft has Dallas securing a big-time offensive weapon with the 12th overall pick in the draft. Jordan Reid has the Cowboys selecting Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty, who tallied a head-spinning 2,601 rushing yards this season for the Broncos. It would be a homecoming for Jeanty, who played his high school ball at Frisco Lone Star. 2025 Cowboys schedule: List of opponents set, face playoff teams 10 times :: Cowboys Wire Link The NFC East’s draw of the AFC East in 2025

Giants are keeping head coach Brian Daboll, GM Tennessee Titans are keeping Brian Callahan, have fired Ran Carthon The Jets have interviewed Mike Vrabel, Ron Rivera for HC, ESPN’s Louis Riddick for GM List of Jets scheduled interviews: Aaron Glenn, Detroit Lions defensive coordinator, Matt Nagy, Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator and former Bears head coach, Brian Flores, Vikings defensive coordinator and former Miami Dolphins head coach, Josh McCown, Vikings QB coach, Arthur Smith, Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator and former Atlanta Falcons head coach, Mike Vrabel, former Tennessee Titans head coach, Ron Rivera, former Carolina Panthers and Washington Commanders head coach, Rex Ryan, former Jets and Buffalo Bills head coach, Brian Griese, San Francisco 49ers QB coach, Vance Joseph, Denver Broncos defensive coordinator, Bobby Slowik, Houston Texans offensive coordinator, Joe Brady, Bills offensive coordinator, Jeff Ulbrich, Jets interim head coach, Darren Rizzi, Saints interim head coach List of Bears requested/scheduled interviews: Aaron Glenn, Mike Vrabel, Brian Flores, Arthur Smith, Ben Johnson, Lions offensive coordinator, Mike McCarthy, current Dallas Cowboys head coach, Thomas Brown, Bears interim head coach, Anthony Weaver, Dolphins defensive coordinator, Mike Kafka, New York Giants offensive coordinator, Drew Petzing, Arizona Cardinals offensive coordinator, Todd Monken, Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator, David Shaw, Broncos senior personnel executive and former Stanford head coach List of Jaguars requested/scheduled interviews: Aaron Glenn, Ben Johnson, Joe Brady, Todd Monken, Robert Saleh, former Jets head coach and current Green Bay Packers offensive consultant, Kellen Moore, Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator, Liam Cohen, Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator, Patrick Graham, Las Vegas Raiders defensive coordinator List of Saints requested/scheduled interviews: Aaron Glenn, Mike Vrabel, Joe Brady, Mike Kafka, Anthony Weaver, Kellen Moore, David Shaw List of Patriots requested/scheduled interviews: Mike Vrabel, Ben Johnson, Byron Leftwich, former Buccaneers offensive coordinator, Pep Hamilton, former Chargers and Texans QB coach

Mike McCarthy makes his case to remain Cowboys head coach: ‘I’m a winner’ :: The Mothership Link The head coach made it clear he’d prefer to return to Dallas next season, and the 12th-winningest coach in NFL history thinks the Cowboys should want him back, too. “I don’t like to talk about myself that way, but I’ll just be clear: I’m a winner. I know how to win. I’ve won a championship. I won a championship in this building,” McCarthy said. “I’m definitely in a position with Jerry [Jones] to move the program forward, there’s no question about that in my mind. That’s why these conversations need to happen in the near future.” Chicago Bears request permission to interview Cowboys’ Mike McCarthy :: Cowboys Wire Link McCarthy’s contract with the Cowboys doesn’t expire until Jan. 14, but the Bears don’t want to wait. Now Jerry Jones must either grant permission to Chicago, which could signal that McCarthy is not being retained, or block the interview, thereby giving up some negotiating leverage in a presumed return. (He also could block the interview and then still not retain the coach, which would be a terrible look.) 5 potential landing spots for Mike McCarthy after his Cowboys contract expires :: Cowboys Wire Link Chicago may be the most obvious fit, but Jacksonville, Indianapolis, Las Vegas, and New England each could make sense in their own way, too. Creating a culture, establishing stability, and developing a young quarterback are all McCarthy’s strong suits; each of those clubs could use someone who brings exactly that. New Orleans also expected to woo McCarthy :: Nick Harris Anonymous player shades Cowboys’ owner Jerry Jones while praising Mike McCarthy :: SI.com Link One Cowboys player told Jane Slater that McCarthy has been coaching “with one hand behind his back” and that “it’s not easy being a head coach here.” The anonymous Cowboy also pointed out that he believes McCarthy deserves the chance to “run it how he wants.” Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones explains why he won’t relinquish GM title :: Fort Worth Star-Telegram Link Jones was unequivocal in explaining that he’ll be staying put as the Cowboys’ general manager. “I bought the team. I think the first thing that came out of my mouth… [at] that press conference, okay, somebody asked, ‘Did you buy this for your kids?,’ and I said, ‘Hell, no, I bought it for me,’ and I didn’t buy an investment. I bought an occupation,” said Jones. “I was 46, I bought something I was gonna do for the rest of my life, and that’s what I’m doing. And so no, the facts are that, since I have to decide where the money is spent, then you might as well cut all the [expletive] out. [I’m] making the call anyway.” Instant Analysis: Which Cowboys free agents should be brought back in 2025? :: Cowboys Wire Link Rico Dowdle, KaVontae Turpin, Jourdan Lewis, Eric Kendricks, and Trent Sieg are among the free agents the front office should prioritize in re-signing. There are others, but some longtime Cowboys- including fan favorites like Zack Martin and DeMarcus Lawrence- are probably better off moving on. Cowboys announce extensions, reserve/futures contracts :: Dallas Cowboys Public Relations Trey Lance ‘thankful’ for opportunity with Cowboys :: The Mothership Link Lance is set to become a free agent for the first time in his career. If he’s taken his final rep as a Cowboy, he says he’s learned a lot… no matter what comes next. “I’ve gotten closer with these guys, gotten closer with the coaching staff, and kind of learned a new way to see the game and learned how different guys see the game,” he said. “Yeah, I think I’ve grown physically, mentally, and I know myself better as a person.” Micah Parsons sends recruiting pitch to Miami Dolphins WR Tyreek Hill to join Cowboys :: Blogging the Boys Link Parsons has already started lobbying for the Cowboys to get active in free agency this offseason. With news that Hill is looking to leave the Dolphins, the notion of pairing him with CeeDee Lamb is certainly exciting. Dallas does currently have over $17 million in cap space that can roll over to next season. Parsons pointed out that Texas has no state income tax as part of his social media pitch. Cowboys-Commanders postgame analysis :: Cowboys Wire Cowboys sideline exclusive: Brandon Aubrey pens apology note after kickoff goes awry :: Dallas Morning News Link Turns out Aubrey was intentionally kicking the ball out of bounds; because of an earlier penalty, it pinned Washington at their own 25. But he certainly didn’t mean to drill Michelle Siemienowski. After the game, the kicker handwrote a note to her, apologizing for the errant boot. Earlier in the day, Aubrey won the club’s Bob Lilly Award, given to “the Dallas Cowboys player that showcases the highest level of achievement, sportsmanship, dedication, and leadership.” List of 2025 opponents finalized :: Dallas Cowboys WATCH: Cowboys owner Jerry Jones makes acting turn in ‘Landman’ :: Cowboys Wire Link The owner, playing himself, showed up in a hospital scene to give familial advice to characters played by Jon Hamm and Billy Bob Thornton. “I made my mind up a long time ago I was going to work with my kids,” Jones says in his acting cameo. “And they’re involved in everything. They’re involved in my leasing, oil and gas, real estate. And so when I got the Cowboys, I got it so that we could all work together. I thought I was doing it for them, but the one that got the most out of it was me.”

Even in a season finale in which an expected loss was just fine- since it would bring an improved draft pick- the Cowboys managed to find a way to break their fans’ hearts by doing just enough to notch a feel-good win… and then falling flat anyway in the final moments. The 23-19 Washington win cemented Dallas’s record at 7-10 and helped the team lock in the 12th overall pick in the 2025 draft, but it ultimately left more of a bad aftertaste to linger through the offseason than anything. There were scant bright spots- Micah Parsons came out of the box hot to secure a place in the NFL history books- but most of the rest of Sunday’s season-ending loss fell into the category of things that Cowboys fans are ready to leave behind as the new year begins in earnest. From the team’s infuriating red-zone ineptitude to Trey Lance’s total lack of accuracy, Malik Hooker’s premature celebration to Brandon Aubrey taking out a cheerleader from distance, a phantom face mask call that proved costly to letting a lowly backup be the hero, here’s a look at the good, the bad, and the ugly from the last chapter of a 2024 season that- appropriately enough- was mostly the latter two things. [affiliatewidget_smgtolocal] Good: Parsons leads strong defensive statement early Parsons wasted no time reaching double-digit sacks for 2024, dropping Jayden Daniels for a loss on the very first play from scrimmage on Sunday. That made him just the fourth player in league history to hit 10+ in each of his first four seasons. He added another just two snaps later, leaving him alongside Reggie White as the only men credited with a dozen sacks or more in each of their first four years. The entire Dallas defense got off to a hot start in Week 18, forcing Washington to punt on each of their first four possessions and allowing just 21 net yards. While Mike Zimmer’s unit couldn’t sustain that effort, giving up three touchdown drives of 70-plus yards in the second half, their early work helped keep the Commanders off the field (just 22:57 worth of possession overall) and the Cowboys in front on the scoreboard for much of the afternoon. Bad: Falling behind just as Washington concedes Dan Quinn pulled Daniels after halftime, seemingly content to take the season-ending L and prepare for the postseason. Only no one told Marcus Mariota. The 31-year-old veteran backup promptly punched the Cowboys right in the mouth, leading the Commanders on their best drive of the game to reach the end zone and take their first lead of the day. Mariota turned in a brilliant performance, going 15-of-18 passing, throwing two touchdowns, running for another, and ending with a 141.0 passer rating (the sixth-best of his 10-year career). Ugly: Trey Lance’s accuracy Lance finally made a regular-season start in a Dallas uniform… and many Cowboys fans quickly realized why it might have taken so long. While the 24-year-old is a dynamic athlete capable of doing real damage with his legs, his accuracy and decision-making as a passer is often tough to watch. Lance missed receivers all day, showing himself to be off-target on short-, middle-, and long-range balls equally. Perhaps no incompletion was more maddening than the fourth-down dud to an open Rico Dowdle that, after an impressive scramble to set up the toss, fell harmlessly at the running back’s feet in the end zone. Of his career-high 34 pass attempts, Lance connected on just 20 (also a personal best). That 58.82% completion rate is actually Lance’s second-best in games where he’s logged double-digit throws… but there are only four of those since he was drafted in 2021. Good: Defense rallies after Commanders’ would-be TD Washington nearly blew things wide open midway through the second quarter. A first-down play from the Dallas 36 saw Daniels flip the ball to wide receiver Dyami Brown, who stopped mid-run and heaved a beautiful bomb to fellow wideout Olamide Zaccheas all alone in the end zone. The Cowboys had been caught napping, with both DaRon Bland and Malik Hooker reacting way too late to the trick play. But despite a perfect pass that hit him in the hands, Zaccheaus couldn’t reel in the easy touchdown. Rather than let the close call shake their confidence, the Dallas defense stiffened, with Bland and Hooker getting in on the next two plays to stop the Commanders and hold them to just a field goal. Given how close they had just come to giving up an embarrassing seven points, it was a win. Bad: Phantom facemask call keeps Washington alive late Clinging to a 19-16 lead with under three minutes to play, the Dallas defense hoped to shut things down one last time. Donovan Wilson notched what looked to be a sack on second down for a 10-yard loss, but officials called him for a facemask grab. Replays seemed to clearly show that Wilson palmed the crown of Mariota’s helmet in pulling him toward the ground, but he was nowhere near the facemask or any helmet opening. Instead of 3rd-and 14 from their own 5-yard-line, the Commanders got walked up to the 30. The phantom penalty also gifted them a new set of downs, sending them on their way to what proved to be a game-winning touchdown. Ugly: Aubrey’s kickoff turns into head shot on cheerleader Aubrey’s long-range kicking skills have given him a reputation as one of the league’s top legs, but one of his boots on Sunday also may have given one Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader a serious headache. While attempting what looked to be some sort of squib kick early in the second quarter to force a return try on a short-field kick, Aubrey’s offering sailed well out of bounds. An NFL media member tried to stop the errant ball with his outstretched hand, but it drilled rookie cheerleader Michelle Siemienowski in the back of the head while the squad was performing. It was one of

After the team posted one more heartbreaking loss to put a final, frustrating bow on a thoroughly disappointing 7-10 season, Cowboys fans waited for owner Jerry Jones to make an appearance. The assumption was that he would have some sort of statement- on the coaching staff whose jobs now hang very much in the balance, on his vision for the coming direction of the team, and, maybe, on what he plans to do differently to turn around the most visible sports franchise on the planet as their championship drought now stretches toward three full decades. As it turns out, Jones had things to say Sunday night. Only they were scripted lines of dialogue in a TV series in which he had a cameo role. The Cowboys owner showed up- as himself- in an episode of Landman, the Paramount+ series from creator Taylor Sheridan (of Yellowstone fame) starring Billy Bob Thornton and set against the backdrop of the West Texas oil business. Jones’s appearance in Episode 9 takes place in a hospital, where he pays a visit to the character played by Emmy-winning actor Jon Hamm, who has just suffered a heart attack. And while Jones’s lines were written for him to fit the show’s narrative, they could just as easily have been lifted out of any one of the 82-year-old billionaire’s numerous interviews about the foundering football club that he purchased in 1989 and turned into a $10 billion family business. The scene features Jones explaining how his daughter’s college days at Stanford led him to invest in a few California gas wells, to give him an excuse to visit her on campus more often, and that those wells delivered enough money for him to buy the Cowboys. While Charlotte really did attend Stanford, that story as told by Jones in Landman has been molded and shaped somewhat for better dramatic effect. He does, though, go on to emphasize the genuine importance of family in a way that rings true for the Cowboys owner. “I made my mind up a long time ago I was going to work with my kids,” Jones says in the scene. “And they’re involved in everything. They’re involved in my leasing, oil and gas, real estate. And so when I got the Cowboys, I got it so that we could all work together. I thought I was doing it for them, but the one that got the most out of it was me.” Chalk it up to the lighting, the grainy film look of the cinematography, the background music, the pregnant pauses in his delivery, his cracking voice and even moistened eyes, or just some bit of Hollywood magic worked in the editing booth, but it’s a heartfelt and poignant moment. Jones certainly has never lacked the showmanship gene or a flair for the dramatic. Jones and the Cowboys worked with Sheridan for their 2023 schedule release video, during the height of Yellowstone‘s popularity. And the Cowboys owner has previously appeared as himself in the fictional worlds of other scripted series, including Coach, Arli$$, Entourage, and The League. To be fair, performing the Landman scene would have been an easy line item on Jones’s list of commitments and obligations for any given day and certainly would have had no bearing whatsoever on any of the weighty football-related matters swirling around the team in this season that has pushed many of their faithful followers to their breaking point. But that won’t stop legions of Cowboys fans from screaming to the rafters about Jones’s latest acting gig as just the latest example of the misplaced priorities of the organization’s ultimate leading man.