For the first time since 2010, Jerry Jones‘ head coach on the Dallas Cowboys won’t be Jason Garrett. After only making the playoffs three times under Garrett, the Cowboys now have a Super Bowl champion as their head coach in Mike McCarthy.

McCarthy and the Cowboys will now soon begin their 2020 season, but, despite the team being 100% moved on from the Garrett era, Jones recently fired a subtle shot at his former coach.

Jerry Jones’ Dallas Cowboys underperformed under Jason Garrett

During the 2010 NFL season, the Dallas Cowboys started 1-7. That led to Jason Garrett ultimately replacing Wade Phillips as the team’s head coach.

Garrett was then the Cowboys’ head coach from then through the 2019 season, even with his teams missing the playoffs in each of his first three full seasons.

Dallas finally made the playoffs in Garrett’s fourth full season in 2014, going 12-4 that year, and they won in the Wild Card Round over the Detroit Lions. They, however, ultimately lost to the Green Bay Packers in the Divisional Round.

Dallas then only went 4-12 in 2015, but in 2016, led by Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott, the Cowboys went 13-3. They didn’t do anything in the playoffs, though, as they lost to the Packers in the Divisional Round again.

The Cowboys then really underperformed in 2017 under Garrett, going 9-7, but they bounced back in 2018, going 10-6. Dallas won a playoff game in 2018 too but lost in the Divisional Round to the LA Rams.

The 2019 season was then extremely disappointing for the Cowboys. Despite having a ton of talent, they only went 8-8 and missed the playoffs. The team’s poor performance that year led to the Cowboys parting ways with Garrett.

In Garrett’s career with Dallas, his teams went 85-67 overall under him and 2-3 in the playoffs.

The Cowboys hired Mike McCarthy as the team’s new head coach

In January 2020, the Cowboys hired Mike McCarthy — who won a Super Bowl with the Green Bay Packers — to be their next head coach. McCarthy ultimately went 125-77-2 in 12-and-a-half seasons with the Packers. His teams also went to the playoffs in nine of those seasons and went 10-8 in those 18 total games.

“One of our primary goals in selecting the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys was to focus on a proven team builder and winner, someone who has a proven track record of winning, not only consistently but at the highest level,” Jones said, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “In Mike McCarthy, we found a coach who not only checked those boxes, but also has the experience of taking an NFL team to the biggest stage, a Super Bowl, and completing the job.”

So far, McCarthy has seemed committed to winning a Super Bowl, which is exactly what Jones and the fans want to hear.

“I’m just going to say this, and to the fans, the commitment will be unwavering,” McCarthy said, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “I won my first Super Bowl here in North Texas at AT&T Stadium. I just want to tell you I am anxious and excited to get to work on winning the next Super Bowl for the Dallas Cowboys.”

Jerry Jones recently took a subtle shot at Jason Garrett

The Cowboys, and every other NFL team, are getting ready to start the 2020 season. Before their first game, though, Jones went on 105.3 The Fan and discussed his team.

During the interview, Jones received a question about what a Mike McCarthy-led team looks like, and while answering it, he fired a subtle shot at Garrett.

“I think you’ll see a team out there that is probably harder to get a beat on. I think on both sides of the ball that a McCarthy team will have more ambiguity about it,” Jones said. “We won’t be as predictable as possibly we’ve been. We’ve had the horsepower to be predictable, run it right down their throat, but you’ll see a team here that gives you a little more to think about on both sides of the ball, and that’s by design. That’s part of him.”

Obviously, this isn’t a significant shot at Garrett, but Jones certainly highlighted some areas where the Cowboys have struggled in the past. 

Only thing that matters, though, is whether this ultimately results in more wins for the Dallas Cowboys. Will it? Stay tuned.

Stats courtesy of Pro Football Reference