Hiring Brian Schottenheimer would spell disaster for Cowboys

Brian Schottenheimer is not the ideal candidate for the Dallas Cowboys head coaching vacancy. Here is why.

Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer on the field before the game against the Las Vegas Raiders at AT&T Stadium. / Tim Heitman-Imagn Images

The Dallas Cowboys may have found their new head coach. However, it is not the name anyone expected coming into the process.

According to multiple reports, the Cowboys have interviewed former offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer for the vacant head coaching position to replace Mike McCarthy.

And apparently, he could be in the drivers seat.

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Unfortunately for Dallas, if they go in that direction, it could be a decision that comes back to haunt them in the years to come.

With a potential hiring of Schottenheimer, the Cowboys would have completed a process that was littered with mistakes. Not only did the Cowboys ostensibly move on from from a Super Bowl-winning coach in favor of a career long assistant with no previous experience leading a franchise, but their delay in making a decision on McCarthy caused them to miss out on many more qualified candidates.

Even then, by choosing to go in this direction, the Cowboys would have passed up names like Kellen Moore, Leslie Frazier, Robert Saleh, and even Deion Sanders - each of which has far more experience on their resumé than Schottenheimer.

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott talks with offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer during training camp at River Ridge Playing Fields in Oxnard, CA. / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

In 14 years as an offensive coordinator, Schottenheimer's offenses only ranked in the top 10 in total offense twice and were only top 10 in scoring five times. One of those years was in 2023 with the Cowboys, in which McCarthy was the one calling plays, with Dallas ranking fifth in total offense and first in scoring.

Outside of the short comings on his resumé, the hiring of Schottenheimer would also be a tremendous blow to the Dallas fan base, much of which sighed with a collective groan upon hearing the news.

Why? Well, for a variety of reasons. One of which being, that it is a signals to the fan base that the Cowboys seemingly have zero interest in truly competing for a Super Bowl. If that were the case, they would have made it through the decision process, and pursued names like Ben Johnson or Aaron Glenn. They likely even would have been better off sticking McCarthy.

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Instead, Dallas interviewed two candidates with below .500 records in their career as head coaches who were subsequently fired, and two candidates with no previous experience at the position. By hiring Schottenheimer, they would be picking the one that was perhaps the least qualified of the bunch.

Dallas Cowboys offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer coaches during warm ups before the game against the New York Giants. / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

On top of that, that candidate not only comes into a franchise that is coming off of a 7-10 season but is devoid of talent on both sides of the ball. To make things worse, he will also be stuck under the thumb of one of the most controlling front offices in all of sports - a front office that has already woefully mismanaged the roster, the NFL Draft, and free agency over the last few seasons.

And as a career-long assistant, he would have no ground to stand out when it comes to battling the Joneses on draft decisions or roster acquisitions.

In other words, unless the Jones family sees something in Schottenheimer that other NFL teams haven't seen in the last 27 years, he is not the right choice to lead the franchise.

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