Widely presumed to be coaching to the end of his existing contract in January, Mike McCarthy might have more life with the Dallas Cowboys than expected.

Owner Jerry Jones not only said the Cowboys (4-7) are not planning to fire McCarthy during the season, he left open the idea Dallas and McCarthy could go the other direction and extend their relationship with a new contract.

“I don’t think that’s crazy at all. This is a Super Bowl-winning coach,” Jones said in an interview with 105.3 FM The Fan on Tuesday. “Mike McCarthy has been there and done that. He has great ideas. We got a lot of football left.”

The Cowboys play their traditional Thanksgiving afternoon home game this week, still searching for their first win at AT&T Stadium this season, and are not in the current playoff field with six games to go.

A win against the New York Giants (2-9) might add some energy to the conversation in Texas with a 10-day break before hosting the Cincinnati Bengals on “Monday Night Football” in Week 14.

Jones said the message to players this week is positive as the Cowboys attempt to record consecutive wins for the first time since beating the Giants and Pittsburgh Steelers in back-to-back games in Weeks 4 and 5. Dallas used two fourth-quarter kickoff return touchdowns to stun the Washington Commanders on Sunday.

“This thing isn’t over,” Jones said.

–Field Level Media