FRISCO, TEXAS — It's the first week of the playoffs. There's no time to waste.
And that's one of the reasons Will McCray shut down any speculation that he might leave the Cowboys. The team's vice president of player personnel has informed the Cowboys that he will not interview for any other general manager positions leaguewide.
“I talked to a few people, but I didn't want to waste anyone's time,” McCray said Monday. “I'm committed to being here. It's a commitment I made to my son and to the organization. I'm going to help with that. I have one year left on my contract.”
This is certainly not the first time McCray has received interest from other teams for a front office position. This time, the manager and the Panthers reportedly asked for permission to meet with McCray about the GM's opening. And there's always a chance that other openings will pop up in the coming weeks.
However, McCray plans to remain in Dallas, which appeared to be good news for head coach Mike McCarthy, who was asked about McCray staying in a press conference Friday.
“This is obviously a great thing for the Dallas Cowboys,” McCarthy said. “There's no question he's very important to our operation. The most important thing you want from an organization is to build consistency when things are going well.”
McCray has been in the Cowboys' scouting department for 22 seasons, but this year marks his seventh year as the club's vice president of player personnel. He oversees the entire scouting department from the college side to the professional ranks, working directly with owner/GM Jerry Jones, chief operating officer Stephen Jones and McCarthy.
“I think it's just a process. When you're in a place where you enjoy and respect and trust the work of the people around you, it's really hard to overcome that,” McCray said. “The decisions that we've made with our professional staff and college staff, how we find players and our process and belief in that…with the support of the coaches and owners that we're working with, we all , working for someone else. I'm really happy.'' We want to continue building that way. ”
