Cowboys’ Mike McCarthy Makes Stark Confession on Packers Matchup

The last time the Dallas Cowboys faced the Packers, more than a year before their NFL playoff matchup, Mike McCarthy committed what coaches now consider the cardinal sin of all. In other words, he made the game about himself. McCarthy took the Cowboys to Green Bay in Week 10 of the 2022 season and didn’t want to ignore the elephant in the room: his long history with the Packers. McCarthy coached Green Bay for 12 seasons, leading the team to a Super Bowl championship in 2010, but was fired midway through his 13th year in 2018. The game took on a new meaning for him, and he felt that he has to explain to his players. cowboy. “Last year, I thought I’d talk about Green Bay early in the week. We did it as a team. “I’m sorry,” McCarthy said at a news conference Monday, “I don’t think this should end with our energy base.” So you live and learn.”

As the Packers travel to Dallas to face the Cowboys in Week 1 of the NFL playoffs, McCarthy said he won’t talk about his history with the Green Bay organization. He just wants to focus on Sunday’s game. “This game is about our loyalty. It doesn’t matter who we’re playing and it really doesn’t matter,” McCarthy said, making it clear he’s neither for nor against the Packers. “I didn’t have any commitments, I didn’t even watch yesterday’s game to prepare for it. I flew last night. I’m there.”

McCarthy has been a head coach in the NFL for nearly 20 years. That means he wouldn’t be foolish enough to think his meeting with his former team this year wouldn’t be a story. But he knows he doesn’t have to get involved. “I don’t have time for that,” he said. “I honestly answered questions about what I experienced here last year. It doesn’t help us win. So if it doesn’t help us win games, I’m not interested in it,” he said.

In fact, the Packers team the Cowboys face in the NFL playoffs is a completely different version of the team, just like Mike McCarthy is a different version of himself. Green Bay is the youngest team in the NFL and has revamped its roster since Aaron Rodgers moved to the Jets.

In last year’s game against the Cowboys, 9 of Green Bay’s 22 starting pitchers were out, 10 of them including the injured David Bakhtiari. “They have new faces. Especially since I played with a lot of boys in high school all year. It is clear that I have become healthier recently. But last night and this morning, I was stuck with my staff,” McCarthy said.

The biggest change was Jordan Love replacing Rodgers at quarterback. “I saw Jordan Love go down a few times,” McCarthy said. “Obviously he’s attacking well, you can tell he’s comfortable. I noticed this because it had a great timer plus throw. But it is still too early. “It’s still in the early stages of preparation.”