5 Mike McCarthy replacements it's never too soon for Cowboys to consider

Even though he is coaching on an expiring contract, it seems more and more likely that with each passing week that Mike McCarthy is not the long-term answer for the Dallas Cowboys at head coach. It goes without saying that hiring him was a huge mistake. Yes, he can get his team ready to play during the regular season, but there was always a finite ceiling, especially during the NFC playoffs.

No, I don't think Jerry Jones is going to fire McCarthy before the end of the season. The earliest he is probably going to move on from him is once the Cowboys are eliminated from postseason contention. Again, McCarthy is coaching on an expiring contract, so Jones does not need to do anything other that let the season play out and go from there. This puts McCarthy in an awful spot.

So what I am going to do today is highlight five way-too-early candidates to conceivably replace McCarthy for next season. Some candidates feel very obvious, while others are a bit under-the-radar. All I want is for the Cowboys to get the right head coach to get the most out of their talent. Jones may always want a head coach he think he can control, despite it costing his franchise oh so dearly.

Let's start with a very popular college football head coach, who happens to hail from Texas originally.

5. USC Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley

I don't know if now is the right time for Lincoln Riley to jump ship at USC, but him eventually doing so is always in the back of my mind. USC may have gotten a huge Week 1 win over LSU, but stumbled in their first Big Ten game last week vs. a Michigan team that can't really throw the football. Riley is every bit an offensive-minded head coach, so that is why I think he will eventually make the leap to the NFL.

Look. I don't think Riley is going to be let go at USC anytime soon. Then again, new athletic director Jennifer Cohen did not hire him. Riley has a bad reputation for not really caring all that much about defense. It is improving, as he did hire D'Anton Lynn away from rival UCLA to replace the consistently ineffective Alex Grinch. In truth, Riley might be better served long-term to be an NFL coach of sorts.

To me, I look at him as a Kliff Kingsbury who interviews better. Old habits die hard for those who loved to sling it in Lubbock. The former Texas Tech quarterback could play very well in Dallas. He would get great success in the ground game, as well as get one of the best season to date out of Dak Prescott. Again, I don't think Riley is going to let Jones control him. It may work out briefly, but it could be toxic.

Even if it feels a tad unlikely right now, there is a pathway in which Riley could replace McCarthy.

4. Former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick

He is still out there... Darth Sidious of the Evil Empire, better known as former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is out their living his best life as an NFL analyst on various platforms. He loves telling people that this guy and that guy can't tackle. Meanwhile, you and I and everyone knows that Belichick wants to get back into coaching for a shot at breaking Don Shula's all-time wins record.

While Belichick would, in theory, be the type of head coach that Jerry Jones would concede power to out of respect, is that really what the Cowboys want to do? Even amid all of their high-profile, on-field struggles in big moments, Dallas has been able to draft well and develop its players. The Cowboys may pay a premium to retain their own guys in free agency, but team-building has not been an issue.

Belichick might be able to get his guys to play harder, but I don't trust him in the war room, nor do I in terms of talent evalution. Simply put, he does not have enough working intel to run the Cowboys like he did the Patriots. Even if he did, it would have to get worse before it gets better. At the end of the day, how much time do Belichick and Jones have to see this thing through. It is a hard pass for me.

Just because I do not love the fit does not mean the Cowboys will not consider hiring Belichick.

3. Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson

It blew my mind that Ben Johnson returned to the Detroit Lions for another season to remain their offensive coordinator. Once he removed his name from the coaching carousel, Dan Quinn was swiftly hired by the Washington Commanders to be their next head coach. Right now, Johnson is on a shortlist of candidates who could conceivably be up for any job that opens up this NFL offseason.

What I like about Johnson is his ability to put his players in positions to make plays. He also coaches up the talent general manager Brad Holmes provides to him and the rest of the Lions coaching staff. In theory, Johnson would fit in quite nicely in the Cowboys building, as he would lean on Stephen Jones and Will McClay in the front office and would not challenge Jerry Jones all that much either.

Unfortunately, I think one of the reasons why Johnson has succeeded so triumphantly in Detroit is that he is working behind the cult of personality that is Dan Fricking Campbell, man. Honestly, would The Joneses try to poach Campbell away from Detroit should McCarthy fail? He did play for the Cowboys back in the day and did star in college at Texas A&M. Wouldn't that be so earth-shattering?

Johnson knows the x's and o's, but I wonder if he is ready to deal with the Jimmies, Joes and Jerries?

2. Houston Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik

If the Cowboys are going to hire any first-time head coach to replace Mike McCarthy, I would have to go with Houston Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik. Houston may be coming off its first loss of the season, but I feel strongly that this is the team to beat in the AFC South this season. The reason why I like Slowik over Ben Johnson in Detroit is that DeMeco Ryans is not Dan Campbell.

Ryans may be becoming more of a CEO-type of head coach in his second season on the job, but he was a stout defensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers previously. Campbell had been a well-thought-of position coach with the New Orleans Saints. It just goes to show that you never really know what type of assistants will go on to be the best head coaches in the game. What about Slowik?

I think stemming off the McVay/Shanahan tree serves him to get a marquee job this offseason. With him being in-state in Houston, that could entice the Cowboys to poach somebody off the other NFL team in Texas' coaching staff. To me, this all comes down to if Slowik can assemble the right staff to get the most out of the Cowboys. While he might, I am not 100 percent certain that will be the case.

For as much as Slowik will be sought after on the coaching carousel, I think Dallas can do even better.

1. Former Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel

Look. I don't care if he is labeled as a retread head coach. Don't be stupid. Just hire Mike Vrabel, and thank me later. I don't really understand why the Tennessee Titans fired him to hire Bill Callahan's son. The only logical explanation I have is Amy Adams Strunk is her late father's daughter. Man, did the late Bud Adams like to meddle or what? Tennessee is terrible and Vrabel is working for the Cleveland Browns.

Even though my Atlanta Falcons could have hired him last offseason, I think the Arthur Smith of it got in the way of making that dream a reality. Plus, I get a sense that Raheem Morris is in the early stages of building something special. Regardless, Vrabel could be a top candidate for any number of marquee jobs, both in the NFL and in college. What if Ryan Day fails at his alma mater of Ohio State?

Vrabel may be defensive-minded, but he knows how to build a great staff. More importantly, he would command a strong running game in Dallas, one that would get the absolute most out of Dak Prescott benefiting from it. While Derrick Henry is one-of-one, I trust Vrabel's football acumen to help recreate him in the aggregate to help improve this Dallas offense. Vrabel is the first head coach I would call.

Jerry Jones may want to get in the way of things, but Vrabel did just work for Adams Strunk's team.