Mike McCarthy, the former Cowboys coach who was in the running for the Saints job, is now not planning to coach this year and will focus on the 2026 hiring cycle instead, a source told ESPN's Adam Schefter on Tuesday night.

Mike McCarthy has pulled himself out of the Saints head coach search. NFL Network reports he’s taking the year off and will look for work in 2026:

Mike McCarthy reportedly will not be the next head coach of the New Orleans Saints. NFL Network's Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport reported Tuesday

McCarthy, whose contract expired with the Cowboys and wasn't signed to an extension, will sit out the 2025 season, according to NFL Media's Tom Pelissero. McCarthy removed his name from consideration for the New Orleans Saints' vacancy. The Saints are the last team to have a head coaching job open this offseason.

Mike McCarthy has decided against coaching in 2025, removing himself as a candidate to fill the NFL's last remaining head coaching vacancy with the New Orleans Saints. A person familiar with McCarthy's decision disclosed it to The Associated Press on Tuesday night on condition of anonymity because McCarthy and the Saints have not discussed it publicly.

It looks like the former Cowboys coach will be following in the footsteps of previous high-profile sideline bosses, clearing the way for one of his protege.

Kellen Moore missed out on landing the Cowboys job but could be the front-runner for the New Orleans Saints after the Eagles dismantled the Commanders on Sunday afternoon, and Mike McCarthy decided to focus on 2026.

Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero jointly noted on Twitter that McCarthy has “decided to focus on the 2026 hiring cycle and will not coach in the NFL this season.” He was still considered one of the hottest candidates on the market, but openings were drying up.

Former Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy has decided to focus on the 2026 hiring cycle and won't coach in the NFL this season, sources told Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.McCarthy spent the last five seasons with the Cowboys but wasn't able to agree to terms on a new contract with the team after his deal expired at the end of the 2024 campaign.

Does anyone want to coach the New Orleans Saints? The former Dallas Cowboys coach decided he will focus on the 2026 hiring cycle, according a report from the NFL Network.

Mike McCarthy has decided that he will not coach in the NFL in the 2025 season, NFL Network Insiders Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport reported Tuesday, as the former Cowboys and Packers head coach has decided to instead focus on the 2026 hiring cycle.