Dallas Cowboys HC calls Detroit a ‘gold mine,’ views Lions as biggest challenge
There are few opposing NFL coaches that know the Detroit Lions better than Mike McCarthy. For 12 seasons (2006-2018), he served as the head coach of their division rival, the Green Bay Packers. Combining that time with his current tenure as the coach of the Dallas Cowboys, McCarthy is 21-7 coaching against the Lions.
Although McCarthy’s teams have often outperformed the Lions in their games against them, he has always had a great deal of respect for both the franchise and the city of Detroit.
McCarthy acknowledged as much when stressing the success of their rushing offense and rush defense this season in remarks made to reporters this week.
McCarthy stated, “Those are two strengths of their team, in my opinion.” “When they played here at AT&T Stadium last year, I was really impressed. There are a lot of playoff opportunities and seeds at stake in this Saturday night game.
“And we look at it as two teams that have the potential to fight for the number two seeds. So it’s going to be a great game…this is a great challenge that we have in front of us.”
As of now, the San Francisco 49ers are in the driver’s seat of the NFC playoff picture as they hold the No. 1 seed. The Lions and Cowboys will battle to see who will likely emerge as the No. 2 seed with two weeks left of action in the regular season.
Saturday will mark the second straight season the Lions will travel to AT&T Stadium to face the Cowboys.
In their last meeting, the Lions fell short 24-6 in a Week 7 matchup. But the Lions were 1-5 following that game
and don’t even really resemble that squad—especially not the one McCarthy was the coach of in the NFC North.
“After spending time in that division, I believe it’s important to acknowledge the fantastic work Dan Campbell has done and the kind of team they’ve assembled there. That site has always seemed like a gold mine to me. I’ve always considered playing in Ford Field to be a challenge.
“It’s different, noisy, underground, and other characteristics. Detroit has admirers, then. While it’s great to see that company succeeding, I think those people did a fantastic job.
