Brian Schottenheimer Explains Reason Behind Expletive-Laden Scolding of Cowboys Players

It didn't take long for Dallas Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer to lose it on his players at practice on Saturday.

After about 20 minutes of practice, Schottenheimer didn't like the energy level he was seeing out of his team and laid into the players in an expletive-laden rant in the middle of the practice field.

What made Schottenheimer's scolding funny was the fact that he did it while the families of players and coaches were in attendance.

On Sunday, Schottenheimer addressed the incident before practice and confirmed it was a result of a lack of energy.

“I do a lot of things on instincts. I just felt like the energy was a bit off," Schottenheimer said. "I think they got the message and ended up putting together a hell of a practice.”

After practice, Cowboys players revealed that they had no issue with the usually mild-mannered Schottenheimer getting on them, according to ESPN's Todd Archer.

"[He was] just reminding us that we have to have a productive day," edge rusher Donovan Ezeiruaku said. "It was nothing that really happened. It just felt as though he needed to do that as the head coach, and that's what he did. I think we had a pretty good day."

"Just pushing guys to be better," wide receiver George Pickens said.

One reason Cowboys players might have felt a bit more relaxed on Saturday is because the team wasn't in pads and instead practiced in shells.

However, that is not an excuse for not bringing enough energy to practice and Schottenheimer was right to get on his players if he felt that was an issue.

A sense of urgency

Dallas Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer at training camp at River Ridge Playing Fields. — Dallas Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Schottenheimer very clearly isn't messing around this year, nor should he be. The Cowboys haven't made the playoffs in two seasons and should be operating with a sense of urgency.

It's very clear Jerry Jones is feeling the urgency, as he has made it quite clear he's willing to go the extra mile in order to beef up the roster further ahead of the start of the regular season.

There is far more urgency when it comes to the Cowboys' defense, which was the NFL's worst last season. As long as its key players stay healthy, the Cowboys' offense is going to hold up its end of the bargain.

The difference in Dallas being a playoff team or not will be the performance of the defense. Luckily, the Cowboys don't have to be the '85 Bears out there and just an average defensive showing should be enough with the kind of firepower Dallas has on offense.

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