I think it's easy for people to spend other's money. Yes they make a lot of money, but simply spending money on top of more money does not solve problems. It is HOW you spend the money that counts. Who would we have hired as coach this year? What kind of change over would it have caused on the rest of the coaching staff? How would it have affected current player policy and draft approach this past spring? There are a ton of moving parts to consider in firing McCarthy early, and they chose not too because of the coming rebuild. He was always going to be a lame duck coach this year.
Frankly, I said and still think this is a rebuilding year for the Cowboys. I think they know this. They are resetting the cap in light of CeeDee, Dak, and Parsons contracts. They want as many cheaper, young players as they can have on the team which is why they are letting them play it out and develop. I think they are going to turn over the roster a bit more after this season than in a normal year, and probably are on a 2-year rebuild to capitalize on the last part of Dak's career. They will probably sign him to one more contract if he delivers playoff wins on the back end of his current contract.
I think this was always the plan. Whether it works or not is anyone's guess. But I think the Cowboys shot their shot the last three years with the cap, the team was too soft, and it didn't pan out. What REALLY matters is their philosophy next year with a new head coach, and whether that philosophy aligns with current NFL trends (e.g. having good DTs, using motion on offense, etc..)
Given some player injuries, they will probably be better next year after getting some guys back. But they also need to be aggressive in turning over the bottom half of the roster and spending what cap money they do have as wisely as possible, while developing a consistent strategy from year to year like SF or Pittsburgh does.
