NFL Insider Explains Why Bill Belichick-Cowboys Rumors ‘Make No Sense’

Everyone made the same joke Sunday during and after the Dallas Cowboys’ embarrassing playoff loss to the Green Bay Packers.

It centered around Bill Belichick and whether Cowboys owner Jerry Jones will replace Mike McCarthy with the former New England Patriots head coach this NFL offseason.

Reasonable idea, right? Belichick is a free agent after mutually parting ways with New England last week and Dallas’ roster is built to win now despite its recent postseason futility.

Well, not so fast. While Belichick reportedly has a solid relationship with Jones, the potential power structure in Dallas could complicate matters.

“Rumors suggesting Belichick could be in play for the Cowboys make no sense on the surface,” NFL insider Mike Sando wrote Monday in a column for The Athletic. “Would Belichick suddenly be fine with his team’s owner pontificating weekly regarding all aspects of the team, ramping up expectations and influencing personnel decisions? Why would a six-time Super Bowl winner such as Belichick suddenly relinquish control of the things that have been most important to him? It doesn’t make sense to me.”

This perhaps is an understated aspect of the Belichick-Cowboys speculation. Sure, Belichick fits from a pure coaching perspective. But Patriots owner Robert Kraft mostly stayed out of his hair in New England, with Belichick responsible for building the roster, as well. Presumably, that wouldn’t be the case in Dallas, where Jones is the face of the franchise, for better or worse.

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Maybe the opportunity to win a title elsewhere — like Tom Brady did with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers — will be enough to lure Belichick to Dallas, even if Jones continues to get his hands dirty with personnel decisions. Or maybe Jones is so desperate for another ring — the Cowboys haven’t won a Super Bowl since the 1995 season — that he’ll cede full power to Belichick.

Certainly, those conversations will need to be had before Belichick heads to the Lone Star State. And that’s assuming the Cowboys are ready to move on from McCarthy, who has led Dallas to three straight 12-win seasons but simply can’t get over the hump in the playoffs.