The last time the Cowboys had a losing record midway through November, it was Mike McCarthy’s first year on the job. He had lost Dak Prescott for the year and the offense had predictably struggled in his absence, but more concerning was how bad the defense had been under new coordinator Mike Nolan.
Now, the Cowboys find themselves in almost the exact same situation. Prescott is out for the year, and the offense has looked abysmal without him. But the defense has been just as bad, if not worse, under a new coordinator also named Mike.
Another commonality between the 2020 and 2024 seasons: the only two years of the McCarthy era that didn’t feature Dan Quinn in the coaches room.