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The Dallas Cowboys named Brian Schottenheimer the tenth head coach in franchise history on Friday, a move that simultaneously made perfect sense, yet turned heads around the league. There seemed to be an expectation that Jerry Jones would make a splashier hire than this, someone who could provide a metaphorical shot in the arm to America’s Team. Instead, the Cowboys turned to someone from inside their own building who has been in the NFL for over two decades.
But Schottenheimer’s 20-plus years of experience isn’t what landed him the head coaching job in Dallas. The fact that he’s the son of Marty Schottenheimer, who won 200 games and had 13 postseason appearances in his coaching career wasn’t the deciding factor either.
According to NFL insider Jeremy Fowler, there is a belief around the league that part of the reason Brian Schottenheimer was ultimately the choice to replace Mike McCarthy was because Dak Prescott pushed for him behind the scenes. ESPN’s Todd Archer provided more details on the Schottenheimer/Prescott relationship.
“Schottenheimer had a supporter in quarterback Dak Prescott. The two have a good relationship, and according to people in and around the team, Prescott likes Schottenheimer’s creativity,” writes Archer. “After a slow start offensively in 2023, the belief from some was that Schottenheimer played a part in the schematic changes that led to the offense taking off in the final 13 weeks of the season, even if former coach Mike McCarthy was calling the plays.”
Dallas finished the 2023 season as the highest scoring team in the NFL, putting up nearly 30 points per game en route to their third consecutive 12-5 finish.
If Dak Prescott can return to 2023 form in 2025, there’s good enough reason to believe that Dallas could make a return to the postseason, even if they have to compete in a division which is home to the two teams who will be playing on Sunday for the right to call themselves NFC Champions. Remember, not only did the Cowboys finish the 2023 regular season as the NFC’s 2nd-best team, Prescott finished No. 2 in the NFL MVP vote.
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