Speculation that Sean Payton will one day coach the Dallas Cowboys has been a popular topic since the Super Bowl winner stepped down from his post with the New Orleans Saints.
The Cowboys' current coach, Mike McCarthy, wants no part of that discussion.
"It's a narrative I don't want to be a part of," McCarthy said Tuesday from the NFL Scouting Combine, per the team's official website. "I don't think anyone wants to be a part of it -- on either side of the fence. In fairness to Sean, he's being asked the questions. Nothing good comes out of that."
Following the Cowboys' playoff loss to the San Francisco 49ers, owner Jerry Jones dismissed discussion about the future of McCarthy and his staff. When Payton left the Saints, the speculation that the former Dallas assistant, who Jones has repeatedly sought to lead his club, ramped up.
"But I think you do need to understand that I get to spend a lot of time with Jerry, both as the owner and the GM," McCarthy said. "In our conversations, you talk about the partnership between the head coach and the GM, those are the conversations I have. The strength of the partnership, what's in front of us. We have big decisions to make on the roster. He addressed it. We laughed about it and moved on. That's really where it is. It's something for externals to talk about but I don't see it as any type of topic or anything that gets in the way of winning."
The only way for McCarthy to truly end the talk of his job status and the possibility of Payton eventually taking over is for the Cowboys to win big in 2022. Anything short of a Super Bowl trip will lead to another round of speculation next offseason.