Brian Schottenheimer is a great head coach.
Brian Schottenheimer is an elite play-caller.
Brian Schottenheimer works harder than anyone.
Well, that is if you ask Brian Schottenheimer. But a poll of Dallas Cowboys fans, especially after the latest and greatest meltdown in Week 8's loss to the Arizona Cardinals, would indicate otherwise. The leader of America's Team has lost the pulse of the nation completely, if he ever even had it before.
Sunday's defeat at home was simply inexcusable. And to make matters worse, Schottenheimer continues to make boastful declarations to the media like the ones he made above; declarations that he eventually has to back up.
"There’s only one thing I know how to do, and that’s work. I’m a problem solver."Brian Schottenheimer after loss to ARZ
If that's your truth.
Brian Schottenheimer's quote after loss to Cardinals proves Cowboys' HC doesn't get it
Jerry Jones isn't interested in making a coaching change, even after that embarrassing loss to the Cardinals, but perhaps he should be. Schottenheimer's team is as down in the dumps as ever, and the head coach is at the center of the issues in Dallas.
Before this matchup, Schotty was already driving Cowboys fans crazy with his long answers in press conferences and his public confidence that bordered on hubris, in addition to things like giving Christian Parker a game ball for a lackluster effort, the team's penalties and general lack of direction.
You know, all the things that make a coach great.
So, for Schottenheimer to face the media and, in earnest, say that he's a problem solver is just ridiculous and cuts into any of the remaining credibility that he has with the fanbase. This is a coach who is leading a below .500 club for the second straight year.
A coach who can't even navigate through an NFC East division with major injuries to each of the other three teams' starting quarterbacks. A coach who has strung together two wins exactly one time in 25-game tenure.
And yet Schottenheimer feels completely justified in writing another check in the post-game that he won't cash the following week. If the fanbase is sniffing out a bit of insincerity or failing to trust the head coach, surely it won't be long before the players in the locker room begin doing the same.
If they haven't already.
Schottenheimer speaks as if he's accomplished anything as an NFL head coach other than a 10-14-1 record. Guys with that résumé don't get to "remind" the media who they are; that is earned through combat. And Schottenheimer has lost so many battles that he's close to losing the war altogether.
Let's go through all of the mistakes that Schottenheimer made on Sunday that helped contribute to a backbreaking 33-30 loss at the hands of a short-staffed Cardinals team that benched its starting quarterback mid-game. Then, we'll assess whether Schottenheimer can call himself a problem solver.
Every shortcoming Brian Schottenheimer had in Dallas' loss to Arizona
First of all, let's talk about all of the luck or good fortune that the Cowboys had in this game, yet they still couldn't escape with a win.
Cardinals wideout Michael Wilson had a huge drop on the first possession, which eventually led to a punt instead of a big play and a score. Jonathan Mingo muffed the following punt, but it bounced the Cowboys' way. Trey McBride dropped a pass across the middle on a free play due to an offsides.
Dallas' Shemar James Jr. got an interception off a dropped pass that he ran all the way back to the 5-yard line. Then, Javonte Williams fumbled at the goal line, but James Mitchell fell on it in the end zone for a touchdown. Kendrick Bourne also dropped a big pass for Arizona near the end of the first half.
DeMarvion Overshown had a borderline unnecessary roughness penalty go uncalled, and he jarred the ball loose from Cardinals running back Bam Knight. The Cowboys were gifted the ball at the 2-yard line because of a pass interference call.
The Cowboys got a first down because of an unnecessary roughness penalty after the play, that play being an awful screen pass called by Schottenheimer. Arizona was so slow to the line of scrimmage on a play in which Schottenheimer ended up just barely being able to challenge the ruling on the field.
Then, of course, the Cardinals missed an extra point in the final seconds of regulation to gift Dallas a chance to win in overtime. And despite all of that, the Cowboys could not find a way to win this game against Gardner Minshew and Tyler Allgeier. That is completely demoralizing.
Where were Schottenheimer's problem-solving skills?
For Schottenheimer's shortcomings, let's start in the first half, when he opted to go for it on 4th-and-1 at the Cowboys' own 32-yard line. Even worse was the play call, which was a vanilla run up the middle instead of a quarterback sneak. He also had a bad challenge that he lost on the play before.
On the following possession, after a goal-line stand by the defense, Schottenheimer then decided to sneak it. And had success. Go figure. But then he called a deep shot on second down, which would be fine if the following play wasn't a "give-up run" on 3rd-and-8. That has become his calling card.
Near the end of the first half, on another 3rd-and-20 in field goal range, instead of trying to chip away a few more yards and make it easier on Brandon Aubrey, Schotty waived the white flag and called another basic run. On the final drive, he just settled for a 61-yard field goal, even with a timeout.
It's not like Aubrey has been automatic from 60+ this year, and yet Schottenheimer didn't push the envelope at all. Aubrey missed the field goal.
In the second half, yet another 3rd-and-short was wasted on a handoff up the middle from the pistol. Calls like this are the reason that the Cowboys had only 17 points through three quarters, despite their defense playing its best game of the season.
Eventually, the dam broke on defense, and Allgeier ran all over them. That's what happens when the offense doesn't hold up its end of the bargain and complementary football is not played. Schotty's team just can't put it all together at once.
Continuing with his issues, Schottenheimer had two more fruitless run calls after the ball was given to them at the 2-yard line following a penalty, and it took Dak Prescott doing it himself with his legs to actually punch the ball into the end zone.
Schottenheimer relied on third-down screens because CeeDee Lamb had an insane effort to move the chains on one, but you can't count on that routinely. He called another in the fourth quarter, but to no avail. The Cowboys were bailed out by the aforementioned unnecessary roughness penalty.
On the final offensive possession of regulation, Dallas played for a field goal again instead of trying to stick their foot on Arizona's neck. The defense was getting dominated in the final quarter, so why did Schotty not go for the kill shot, knowing they could easily lose with a six-point lead?
This Dallas team led 27-17 with under four minutes left. They were up three and had the ball with 2:11 left, and the Cardinals only had one timeout. And yet the Cowboys should have lost this game in regulation, but ended up doing so in overtime anyway.
To begin overtime, Dallas chose to kick, despite it being a long fourth quarter for their defense. And conservative play-calling came back to bite the Cowboys once again in the extra stanza, as the drive got off to a brutal start with a wasted run play. No first downs. No score. Ball right back to Arizona.
Cardinals win.
All game, Schotty struggled to give Dak answers for the blitz. Arizona had a beat on the Cowboys' plays, as if Dallas telegraphs things on film or on the field. The team was undisciplined, making several mistakes over and over again. And of course, the big roughing-the-passer penalty.
Schottenheimer has no plan or conviction in his decisions; he doesn't consistently commit to one side or the other. He can't decide whether to be aggressive and believe in his offense or rely on Aubrey to boot long field goals. His choices aren't rooted in analytics or gut feelings.
It's an unsuccessful hodgepodge. He hovers in the middle because he's a nomad without a strategic home.
That is a lot of problems to solve for our resident problem-solver.
Look, not everything is Schottenheimer's fault. He's been mostly saddled with a poor defense for a year and a half. And the offense scored 30 points, so it may feel a bit crazy to act like he didn't do his job, even if a lot of those scores were the result of advantageous calls or field position.
But you just can't tell the media that you're a problem-solver after losing in that fashion. And especially not after you've previously told them that you're a great head coach, an elite play-caller, and that you work harder than anyone. Eventually, your feet will be held to the fire.
And that's what we're doing here, because ultimately, Schottenheimer can't keep getting away with making boastful declarations and not backing them up.
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