Dallas Cowboys agree to hire Mike McCarthy as new coach

Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Mike McCarthy not the safe pick, but smart one for Cowboys SportsPulse: USA TODAY Sports' Mike Jones breaks down why Mike McCarthy may be exactly what the Cowboys need in a new head coach.

The Dallas Cowboys moved quickly to lock in Jason Garrett's replacement.

Former Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy agreed to a deal with the organization Monday to be the franchise's next head coach, he told NFL Media. Fox Sports' Jay Glazer was the first to report the news.

After a weeklong wait, the Cowboys announced Sunday that Garrett, who led the team to a 85-67 record since taking over midway through the 2010 season, would not receive an extension.

McCarthy spent last season out of the NFL after being fired by the Packers with four games remaining in the 2018 campaign. He compiled a 125-77-2 record in nearly 13 years in Green Bay, reaching the playoffs nine times and winning a Super Bowl in the 2010 season.

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McCarthy also twice beat the Cowboys in the playoffs. In the 2014 season, Green Bay upended Dallas in a divisional-round game amid a controversial no-catch call against Dez Bryant that helped prompt a later rewriting of the standard for what constitutes a reception. In 2016, the Packers upset rallied past the top-seeded Cowboys to reach the NFC Championship Game.

Dallas has not reached that stage since the 1995 season.

During his year away from the NFL, McCarthy worked with a team of former coaches to analyze developments throughout the league while reviewing his own tendencies.

McCarthy, 56, interviewed with the team this weekend, according to multiple reports, and also spoke with the Cleveland Browns, Carolina Panthers and New York Giants about their vacancies. According to ESPN, the coach stayed at owner Jerry Jones' house during the process.

The Cowboys also interviewed former Cincinnati Bengals coach Marvin Lewis over the weekend, according to multiple reports.

Follow Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz on Twitter @MikeMSchwartz.