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People Want Answers; We Wish We Had Some
Trying to put our arms around the hiring of Brian Schottenheimer and What is Next.

Bob Sturm
Jan 27, 2025

Today, they speak to us.
We know how this works – an introductory press conference filled with all of our familiar figures of Cowboys football. A new coach begins to try to drink from the fire-hose of his first head coaching job.
For 51-year old Brian Schottenheimer, it is time to make things happen. Getting dressed today for his big day in front of the camera must be an amazing experience as scenes from his life flash before him. He grew up watching his dad do his thing and set off to follow a similar path. Now he is finally here.
So, forgive him if he isn’t a guy who is cynical, not today at least.
Schottenheimer is getting a chance to do something very few coaches ever get to do. Run a NFL football team. One of 32 jobs and you don’t always get to hand-pick which one offers you the rose. If I am guessing, he wasn’t the type to turn down this rare opportunity anywhere. But, now he is on the biggest stage and coaching one of the biggest franchises in the world. Who can imagine what this opportunity must mean to him and his family?
If nothing else, we should remember that this is truly a huge day for a guy who waited his turn.
Of course, we are not here making dreams come true for long-ignored coaches. We are here following a football organization that hasn’t been good enough for way too long. And you all rightfully would like some answers.
On Saturday, I wrote a long piece (found below) about the Cowboys hiring their 10th head coach.
It was mostly about the process and not enough about the actual hire, according to many of you who read it.
I will confess that a big part of not covering what he is all about is that I wish to offer him the benefit of some doubt that what has happened in the past for him. It is a little more complex than merely listing his rankings with teams that had very poor rosters or some other circumstances that should be considered. Nevertheless, people have questions and would enjoy some answers. I often try to provide something more than what I did on Saturday. So, let’s talk.
Morning After: Cowboys Hire Schottenheimer As Next Head Coach
I will answer some of your questions and concerns now before we hear the man speak in a few hours:
From K Rice:

That passage suggests he was reluctant to adopt 11 personnel at a time the entire league headed that way. You might recall the Los Angeles Rams played almost 90% of their season in 11 personnel. Schottenheimer was not interested in that, because he had a love for power football:

Now, I want to warn you that this was written in 2018, so the league has evolved over and over since he was with the Rams in 2012-14. But, he was part of the offensive build that Sean McVay gutted and switched immediately to great success (and much added talent).
Let’s move to 2019:
More from the move to running the rock:
By 2020, everyone was pretty much over the antiquated ways of Pete Carroll and the “let Russ cook” campaign had ended.
Maybe this just tells you that wanting Pete Carroll might have been a bad idea other than trusting his resume of success.
And one more thing. They broke up after a very decent 2020 season in which they won 12 games. In this story, it was suggested that this is all because the time had come where everyone needed something fresh:
Does he believe the solution to every problem is a run up the gut? I doubt it, but we just don’t completely know what he thinks because he is always following orders.
And that is why I am reluctant to guarantee a football ethos that is truly his. He probably has beliefs, but aside from believing running the football when you want to run it is important (and I think nearly every coach ever thinks this), I am not positive I have a great idea of what he wishes to do. Will that even matter in Dallas? He has been hired to follow orders, here, too. So, coaching is about keeping people happy above you and making them think they have hired the right guy.
From Seth Y:
And we also don’t know if he can build a culture that is healthy or will he not really fight for that and be over-run by the circus culture that already exists. It is a tough job here, but there are many who will tell you he is an easy coach to like. In my conversations with him, he is plenty convincing and I anticipate after today, many will be interested in his future exploits.
As far as who will be his OC and whether they will merely be that in name-only, like he was here under McCarthy, we wait to see.
As for the stats, every year he is the OC in this league goes on his ledger. But, I do think context is very important. People love stats without context, so let’s try to be fair.

His worst five offenses by scoring rank are 2007, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2024. If we may give them a look:
2007 - 4-12 team under Eric Mangini and the QB who played the most was Kellen Clemons for an injured Chad Pennington.
2012 - 7-8-1 for Jeff Fisher in his first year after they fired Steve Spagnuolo (2-14 in 2011) and they get a nice Sam Bradford year after thoughts were he was a bust.
2013 - 7-9 as Sam Bradford tore his ACL and I kid you not, the QB who played the most again was Kellen Clemons.
2014 - 6-10 and this is the year they played the entire season with Shaun Hill and Austin Davis as their QBs and the team is packing to move back to Los Angeles.
Then, we got this note on his way to Georgia:
So, yes, I have seen the memes, but I don’t know how much I would put on Schotty.
From Marc:
Bob, what was the point of moving on from Mike McCarthy if you were just going to end up with a guy being touted for “continuity” of an offense that nobody seemed to like anymore? We thought the whole point was to have a new and fresh advantage for an offense because if you are married to Dak Prescott, shouldn’t we attempt to find a scheme for him like Jared Goff has found? Ed Werder made that point a few weeks ago and I agree. Goff hit a ceiling, but with some additions to his personnel and scheme, Detroit has made him into a true leader and asset – perhaps the very best version of himself. Why isn’t Dallas chasing that? And if they are just staying put for comfort or a belief that this is Dak’s best scheme already, then why isn’t Mike McCarthy still here?
Well, the answer is because Mike wanted out. He would still be here if he accepted the terms of a new arrangement, because one was offered. Did Mike overplay his hand? I have no idea. Perhaps he was just ready to bounce anyway or perhaps he believes he will get another gig and is fine with his fill here. But, all roads to point to an insistence from the family that Jason Witten joins the staff – which we will know soon enough if that is as a lock as it seems – and then the whispers about how long until Witten takes over can begin. With Jason Garrett under Wade Phillips, it started very quickly even though Wade was winning almost every game. Why? Because nobody thought that the wins were because of Phillips, which certainly is a result of telling everyone that your head coach is not a very important position. That, of course, is an attitude I have never fully understood, but this all feels incredibly familiar. As if we have seen this episode plenty before.
From Eric D:
From DS:
But, will Brian Schottenheimer be a bottom-five paid head coach while at the same time being “in charge” of the most valuable franchise on the planet? Yes, most likely. And yes, the cash spending of the Cowboys has been quite low for several years now. What does it all mean? Beats me, but we can jump to conclusions for sure. And some might even be correct.
From Michael Hicks:
Well, now we wait for him to speak to himself. What do I think? That the Cowboys are doing what they have generally done. Hire a guy to try to find what they have been missing and to try to get an offense that employs a very highly-compensated QB and an equally highly-compensated WR to dominate.
Is this a good hire? We don’t know, but we can say that if he is your very best candidate, you might not have searched far and wide. However, the thing about sports is knowing what we don’t know. We don’t know what happens next and that is why I am here to follow it closely.
He has a very big job in front of him and it starts today. I vow a clean slate and an earnest covering of his regime because that is my job for you. The essay Saturday was my chance to rage one more time against the process, but now, I turn the page.
The 2025 season starts today and Brian Schottenheimer will now lead the team to wherever it is headed. Let’s see where it is going.
Trying to put our arms around the hiring of Brian Schottenheimer and What is Next.

Bob Sturm
Jan 27, 2025

Today, they speak to us.
We know how this works – an introductory press conference filled with all of our familiar figures of Cowboys football. A new coach begins to try to drink from the fire-hose of his first head coaching job.
For 51-year old Brian Schottenheimer, it is time to make things happen. Getting dressed today for his big day in front of the camera must be an amazing experience as scenes from his life flash before him. He grew up watching his dad do his thing and set off to follow a similar path. Now he is finally here.
So, forgive him if he isn’t a guy who is cynical, not today at least.
Schottenheimer is getting a chance to do something very few coaches ever get to do. Run a NFL football team. One of 32 jobs and you don’t always get to hand-pick which one offers you the rose. If I am guessing, he wasn’t the type to turn down this rare opportunity anywhere. But, now he is on the biggest stage and coaching one of the biggest franchises in the world. Who can imagine what this opportunity must mean to him and his family?
If nothing else, we should remember that this is truly a huge day for a guy who waited his turn.
Of course, we are not here making dreams come true for long-ignored coaches. We are here following a football organization that hasn’t been good enough for way too long. And you all rightfully would like some answers.
On Saturday, I wrote a long piece (found below) about the Cowboys hiring their 10th head coach.
It was mostly about the process and not enough about the actual hire, according to many of you who read it.
I will confess that a big part of not covering what he is all about is that I wish to offer him the benefit of some doubt that what has happened in the past for him. It is a little more complex than merely listing his rankings with teams that had very poor rosters or some other circumstances that should be considered. Nevertheless, people have questions and would enjoy some answers. I often try to provide something more than what I did on Saturday. So, let’s talk.
Morning After: Cowboys Hire Schottenheimer As Next Head Coach
I will answer some of your questions and concerns now before we hear the man speak in a few hours:
From K Rice:
This is very fair. I am hoping for more, too. The facts on Brian Schottenheimer are the following:I was hoping for more analysis on Schottenheimer. I know what to think of the Jones. I don’t know what to think about Scotty.
- He has been in this league coaching for a very long time and has a ton of experience.
- He is very well regarded as a very knowledgeable and easy to work with individual.
- He is attractive enough to the NFL that he never been out of a job for long as an offensive mind.
- He runs a very run-oriented offense and at time is accused of not being modern enough in his approaches.
- He has had many point to conservative and predictable in Seattle and we use Seattle from 2018-2020 as the most recent and relevant stop as well perhaps the only place where he had enough talent to be properly evaluated for results.
- He has not been in very high demand since Seattle due to the frustrations of that run and we are left wondering what he truly believes as an offensive mind.

That passage suggests he was reluctant to adopt 11 personnel at a time the entire league headed that way. You might recall the Los Angeles Rams played almost 90% of their season in 11 personnel. Schottenheimer was not interested in that, because he had a love for power football:

Now, I want to warn you that this was written in 2018, so the league has evolved over and over since he was with the Rams in 2012-14. But, he was part of the offensive build that Sean McVay gutted and switched immediately to great success (and much added talent).
Let’s move to 2019:
The Seahawks LOVED to run the ball in 2018 and they had more yards per game than anyone in the sport. They also scored well and this was probably their big year with him and Pete Carroll trying to build around a roster with Russell Wilson making a ton and holes in a lot of spots. This is also the year they lost to Dallas in the Wildcard round and it did not get better after that.It’s hard to overstate just how transformative Brian Schottenheimer’s offense was to Seattle’s run/pass ratios. The year before, the Seahawks had ranked 30th in run/pass ratio on first downs and in the first half. Last year, they led the league in both. They went from 28th to second in runs when behind in the second half and dropped from third to 23rd in passes when ahead in the second half.
More from the move to running the rock:
The Seahawks fired offensive line coach Tom Cable and replaced him with Mike Solari, who introduced more power- blocking schemes in the run game to complement what had previously been an almost exclusively zone-blocking system. Seattle then went out in free agency and added right guard D.J. Fluker, a former first-round pick who was primarily known for his run-blocking in his time with the Chargers and Giants. They also drafted tight end Will Dissly, a stout run-blocker, in the fourth round.
I don’t know if you know of any team that plans on using its first rounder on a RB, despite “all the other needs on the roster,” but it sounds familiar.In addition to their efforts to improve their run-blocking, the Seahawks also selected running back Rashaad Penny in the first round to bolster a backfield that already had Chris Carson and Mike Davis, but that move did not go as smoothly as their other rushing-related decisions. With all the other needs on Seattle’s roster, though, using a first-round pick on Penny was still a high price to pay at the time. Hindsight did not make that decision look much better, as Penny spent the majority of his rookie season third on the depth chart.
By 2020, everyone was pretty much over the antiquated ways of Pete Carroll and the “let Russ cook” campaign had ended.
If I may remind you, when Mike McCarthy was hired, it was amazing to imagine passing the ball so much and going for it so much after a decade of the conservative Jason Garrett. I am not saying Brian Schottenheimer is extremely conservative, but the Seattle Seahawks from 2018-2020 were. Very.Ask any Seahawks fan what their team does wrong and you’ll get three quick answers: Pete Carroll’s coaching staff runs the ball too often and is too conservative on fourth downs, while John Schneider has let the best defenders from the Super Bowl teams walk out the door with no adequate replacements.
Since the Super Bowl loss to New England, Seattle has gone for it on fourth down only 10% of the time, the lowest rate in the league. Seattle ran the ball 46% of the time last year, sixth most in the league and matching their rate over the last five years. Only Denver had a lower Aggressiveness Index.
Maybe this just tells you that wanting Pete Carroll might have been a bad idea other than trusting his resume of success.
And one more thing. They broke up after a very decent 2020 season in which they won 12 games. In this story, it was suggested that this is all because the time had come where everyone needed something fresh:
That above part again suggests that the ultra-conservatism of the Seahawks was largely because their coach didn’t wish to let Russ cook. Like Mike Zimmer in Minnesota at the same time, these guys were thought of as run-first and run-second type coaches who just wanted to win with defense. The problem was, he didn’t have the defense anymore that could win.it was evident there were philosophical differences between Carroll and Schottenheimer and that they decided it would be in the best interest of both sides to part ways.
Carroll has expressed regret that the Seahawks didn't adjust better to the way opponents were defending them in the second half of the season. He also cited his own dialing back of the offense as part of the reason for the decline in production, saying he tightened things up as the Seahawks faced a handful of strong defenses near the end of the season.
Here, Carroll says the solution is even more running!Carroll said part of the solution next season will be to run the ball enough to force defenses into more favorable coverages.
Carroll hired Schottenheimer in part to work hands-on with quarterback Russell Wilson and to fix a running game that had fallen apart in 2017. Seattle reestablished its run-heavy offense in 2018 and 2019, then dropped back to pass more than any team in the NFL did over the first 10 weeks of this season in a drastic shift.
So, what do we learn here? Well, we learn that Schottenheimer appears to be doing what his head coach wanted. He also did this for Rex Ryan and Jeff Fisher, two other coaches not known for being Mike McDaniel or Kyle Shanahan in their approach to modern football.The Seahawks scored a franchise-record 459 points in the regular season, but that was heavily weighted toward the beginning of the season, as Seattle topped 30 points in seven of its first eight games. Wilson was throwing touchdowns at a record pace for part of that stretch -- and was the early front-runner for MVP -- before he and the rest of the offense hit a wall.
Does he believe the solution to every problem is a run up the gut? I doubt it, but we just don’t completely know what he thinks because he is always following orders.
And that is why I am reluctant to guarantee a football ethos that is truly his. He probably has beliefs, but aside from believing running the football when you want to run it is important (and I think nearly every coach ever thinks this), I am not positive I have a great idea of what he wishes to do. Will that even matter in Dallas? He has been hired to follow orders, here, too. So, coaching is about keeping people happy above you and making them think they have hired the right guy.
From Seth Y:
100%! The worst thing anyone should do is assume they know where these hires end up. The best hires often are not predicted by the media. Also, some great hires end up failing miserably. We really don’t know.Well according to these numbers he has coordinated fairly middling offenses with the best one being the one with Dallas that he didn't even call plays on so tough to see how that translates to being the guy. Now maybe that doesn't matter as much if he is great in the room and great at game management and they have someone innovative calling plays (they haven't announced an OC/playcaller have they?). Who thought Harbaugh, a special teams coach, was a great hire in Baltimore, and he has had a really good career so I guess we can just hope for the best and expect the same like usual.
And we also don’t know if he can build a culture that is healthy or will he not really fight for that and be over-run by the circus culture that already exists. It is a tough job here, but there are many who will tell you he is an easy coach to like. In my conversations with him, he is plenty convincing and I anticipate after today, many will be interested in his future exploits.
As far as who will be his OC and whether they will merely be that in name-only, like he was here under McCarthy, we wait to see.
As for the stats, every year he is the OC in this league goes on his ledger. But, I do think context is very important. People love stats without context, so let’s try to be fair.

His worst five offenses by scoring rank are 2007, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2024. If we may give them a look:
2007 - 4-12 team under Eric Mangini and the QB who played the most was Kellen Clemons for an injured Chad Pennington.
2012 - 7-8-1 for Jeff Fisher in his first year after they fired Steve Spagnuolo (2-14 in 2011) and they get a nice Sam Bradford year after thoughts were he was a bust.
2013 - 7-9 as Sam Bradford tore his ACL and I kid you not, the QB who played the most again was Kellen Clemons.
2014 - 6-10 and this is the year they played the entire season with Shaun Hill and Austin Davis as their QBs and the team is packing to move back to Los Angeles.
Then, we got this note on his way to Georgia:
And then 2024 - where we don’t even know how much of the offense was his and he had ten games of Cooper Rush and an injured QB1 again.On Wednesday afternoon, it was announced that St. Louis Rams offensive coordinator will be leaving the team to accept the same job (plus the quarterbacks coaching position) at the University of Georgia.…it’s also worth noting that Schottenheimer has a clear desire to become a head coach at some point. He interviewed for the Jacksonville Jaguars’ head coaching job after the 2012 season and did the same at Vanderbilt University following 2013. Schottenheimer may believe that having a high-profile position for a successful collegiate program like Georgia’s will boost his chances of receiving a crack at a college head coaching gig.
So, yes, I have seen the memes, but I don’t know how much I would put on Schotty.
From Marc:
I get this one a ton.…Brian may end up being a fine coach. I know nothing about him. But, I guess I don't see the point of moving on from McCarthy if you are just going to end up with the OC (who didn't call plays). If Witten ends up joining the staff then I think that was the plan all along. Interim coach to groom Witten to take the job, and only because Dan Campbell also played TE and has been successful. It's all so strange.
Bob, what was the point of moving on from Mike McCarthy if you were just going to end up with a guy being touted for “continuity” of an offense that nobody seemed to like anymore? We thought the whole point was to have a new and fresh advantage for an offense because if you are married to Dak Prescott, shouldn’t we attempt to find a scheme for him like Jared Goff has found? Ed Werder made that point a few weeks ago and I agree. Goff hit a ceiling, but with some additions to his personnel and scheme, Detroit has made him into a true leader and asset – perhaps the very best version of himself. Why isn’t Dallas chasing that? And if they are just staying put for comfort or a belief that this is Dak’s best scheme already, then why isn’t Mike McCarthy still here?
Well, the answer is because Mike wanted out. He would still be here if he accepted the terms of a new arrangement, because one was offered. Did Mike overplay his hand? I have no idea. Perhaps he was just ready to bounce anyway or perhaps he believes he will get another gig and is fine with his fill here. But, all roads to point to an insistence from the family that Jason Witten joins the staff – which we will know soon enough if that is as a lock as it seems – and then the whispers about how long until Witten takes over can begin. With Jason Garrett under Wade Phillips, it started very quickly even though Wade was winning almost every game. Why? Because nobody thought that the wins were because of Phillips, which certainly is a result of telling everyone that your head coach is not a very important position. That, of course, is an attitude I have never fully understood, but this all feels incredibly familiar. As if we have seen this episode plenty before.
From Eric D:
I appreciate that, but I don’t. I talk to plenty of people but not to Mike or his agent. I am merely experienced in seeing these situations both here and elsewhere and the hints suggest that Mike left. Did he leave over money or his staff or his play-calling or just because he had spent enough time on this ride and was ready to get off? There is a good chance we will never know because Mike is a good and loyal soldier and probably finds a “kiss and tell” as a horrible thing for a football coach to ever consider. So, he quietly goes away and will re-emerge. I am positive he is fine with it and so are the Cowboys. It was time. Neither side seemed thrilled to be working together anymore and thereBob, I think you have a lot more insight to the McCarthy negotiations than you are letting on. Based on my years of following the cowboys, I am going to guess that Jerry delayed the McCarthy negotiations in the hope that some of the other HC openings came off the table and would squeeze McCarthy into buckling and accepting shite terms from Jerry. If anything else, I respect McCarthy MORE for not being a cuck. But, there is always someone willing to.
From DS:
I wish I had insight on the financials. We don’t and never will and I probably would have no idea what I am looking at anyway. But, we do know league revenues and Cowboys revenues and we do know valuations and the Cowboys have more money than anyone. Are they cash poor? They act like it sometimes and other times they are living like they have more money than any other family on earth. I have no idea and, like I said, that is definitely not my lane.What stands out to me about this and everything else is how cheap Stephen is and the why. It's like he is protecting his inheritance. Dad don't sign anyone. Dad hire schotty because he will be cheap.
I think the franchise will be worse off after Jerry moves on.
"These are not serious people"
But, will Brian Schottenheimer be a bottom-five paid head coach while at the same time being “in charge” of the most valuable franchise on the planet? Yes, most likely. And yes, the cash spending of the Cowboys has been quite low for several years now. What does it all mean? Beats me, but we can jump to conclusions for sure. And some might even be correct.
From Michael Hicks:
I love this and if Draft Kings or Prize Picks or whoever posts a prop for this, please notify me immediately. This might happen today.Tell me all: what are the odds Jerry calls him Marty this year at least once in public? Do you think it’s even?
Well, now we wait for him to speak to himself. What do I think? That the Cowboys are doing what they have generally done. Hire a guy to try to find what they have been missing and to try to get an offense that employs a very highly-compensated QB and an equally highly-compensated WR to dominate.
Is this a good hire? We don’t know, but we can say that if he is your very best candidate, you might not have searched far and wide. However, the thing about sports is knowing what we don’t know. We don’t know what happens next and that is why I am here to follow it closely.
He has a very big job in front of him and it starts today. I vow a clean slate and an earnest covering of his regime because that is my job for you. The essay Saturday was my chance to rage one more time against the process, but now, I turn the page.
The 2025 season starts today and Brian Schottenheimer will now lead the team to wherever it is headed. Let’s see where it is going.