With uncertain future, Cowboys coaching staff’s voice should carry little weight on draft day

In Will McClay we trust.

The Dallas Cowboys offseason as been an odd one. Not only did they decide to retain Mike McCarthy with one year remaining on his contract, but they also brought in Mike Zimmer to replace Dan Quinn as the new defensive coordinator this season on a one-year deal. Because of that, both of their futures beyond this season is up in the air.

The lack of stability for the coaching staff beyond this year could be part of the reason why the Cowboys were abnormally inactive in free agency. Other than signing LB Eric Kendricks as a free agent, they stood pat and just re-signed a few of their own. Still, there is still a lot of work to do with only the 2024 NFL Draft to help.

In any other year, long-time NFL coaches like McCarthy and Zimmer would probably be considered assets on draft day due to their past experience of building rosters over the years. This year however, their input could actually contradict how Jerry Jones and Company plan to go about building the roster for future purposes.

What’s good for McCarthy’s scheme or Zimmer’s, may not work for whoever ends up potentially taking their place in 2025. Because of that, the Cowboys brass probably needs to consider tuning out a little when they share their input in the “War Room” when the time comes to make their selection in each round.

It may go a little bit against the grain to mute the wealth of combined experience/knowledge both McCarthy and Zimmer bring to the table, but the Cowboys would probably be better served relying more on Will McClay and the rest of their scouting department instead. After all, they have a rather extensive and proven track record going for themselves as well.

If we knew more about whether or not McCarthy and Zimmer were more than just placeholders this year things would be much different. But, with the amount of uncertainty encompassing them and the future of several key members on the roster, it may be wise for Dallas to make moves for the betterment of the team, not the coaches.

This is just yet another thing to tuck away and keep an eye on when things get under way in the first-round in the 2024 NFL Draft on April 25. The conversations in the War Room could particularly be more interesting this year than in years past and give a glimpse as to whether or not McCarthy and Zimmer have a future with the organization.