Everyone expected Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones to make an underwhelming head coaching hire, but there was a semblance of hope among fans that he would swing for the fences in what could be his last coaching hire.
Those reservations were justified, but Cowboys fans probably (definitely) should have set expectations lower as the team is seriously considering hiring Brian Schottenheimer as its new head coach amid a wholly uninspiring search that included just three other candidates.
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That alone is embarrassing, but consider this: one candidate was in-house (Schottenheimer), one previously worked for the team (Kellen Moore), and the other two (Robert Saleh and Leslie Frazier) met the NFL's Rooney Rule requirement.
While no candidate truly moved the needle, the vast majority of Cowboys fans would prefer Moore and Saleh to Schottenheimer. That feeling may double or triple after you learn of Schotty's ultimate goal for next season.
Cowboys' interest in Brian Schottenheimer as head coach looks even worse
Jane Slater of NFL Network has reported that Schottenheimer wants to call plays next season no matter what. Slater noted that calling plays is "imperative" for Schottenheimer wherever he ends up. That strongly implies that Schotty will call plays for Dallas in 2025.
Schottenheimer was hired by the Cowboys in 2021 as a consultant. Kellen Moore was still in charge of the offense then. He spent the past two seasons as offensive coordinator. Of course, Mike McCarthy was in charge of play-calling. It marked the first time in two decades that he accepted an OC job without play-calling responsibility.
It is easy to understand why Schottenheimer wants to call plays again. It is impossible to understand Dallas would afford him that luxury. The 51-year-old has nearly an exclusively poor track record when he's been commander-in-chief of an offense.
Schotty actually had decent success in his most recent play-calling stint with the Seahawks. In each of his three seasons at the helm, Seattle boasted a top-10 scoring offense. Russell Wilson was consistently a top-10 QB with Schottenheimer calling plays, but it was hardly a perfect marriage.
If you remember, Schottenheimer is largely responsible for helping birth the "Let Russ (Russel Wilson) cook" movement because of his conservative and run-heavy game plan. It was the Cowboys' playoff win over Seattle in 2019 that really helped spawn that mantra.
It's worth noting, too, that Schottenheimer didn't pilot a top-10 offense in terms of yards until his move to the Seahawks. He had nine (!) years as an offensive coordinator before then.
While it hasn't been confirmed that Schotty will call plays if he's retained as head coach or offensive coordinator, Slater made it sound like a non-negotiable regardless of where he ended up. If that turns out to be the case, it will be even harder to warm up to this idea.