Jones Defends Cowboys Coaching Search As Schottenheimer Takes Over

The Cowboys introduced new head coach Brian Schottenheimer to the media Monday afternoon, closing the loop on a dramatic weeks-long saga surrounding the most valuable franchise in professional sports.

Schottenheimer has been in Dallas since 2022, and for the past two seasons was the offensive coordinator—but not the play-caller—under Mike McCarthy, who was fired on Jan. 13, eight days after the NFL’s regular season ended. McCarthy’s five-year contract expired, and Cowboys owner and GM Jerry Jones ultimately decided to search for a new coach.

“This is as big a risk as you could take,” Jones said Monday during an 11-minute response to the first question of the press conference. The Cowboys are giving a four-year contract to Schottenheimer, the son of the late Marty Schottenheimer (who compiled 200 wins in 327 regular-season games for four different teams), who has no head coaching experience himself.

Time to Shine

Jones sought to push back against several perceived negative narratives about the coaching search, including its length and how many candidates were considered. “This was a thorough, thorough process,” he said.

While teams like the Bears and Jets requested interviews with more than a dozen coaching candidates, the Cowboys interviewed three people outside of Schottenheimer (Seahawks assistant head coach Leslie Frazier, former Jets coach Robert Saleh, and Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, who was OC in Dallas before Schottenheimer).

“It’s ridiculous to think that you can make a decision to coach the Cowboys relative to the number of interviews that you might have,” Jones said.

Jones also spoke with Colorado head coach Deion Sanders but did not conduct an official interview with the Pro Football Hall of Famer who won Super Bowl XXX as a member of the Cowboys. Jones noted he had conversations with longtime Seahawks coach Pete Carroll—who fired Schottenheimer in 2021—and Steve Spurrier, but it turns out those discussions were more about gathering intel on Schottenheimer. 

Moving Forward

Both Jones and Schottenheimer expressed their appreciation for McCarthy, who interviewed with the Bears and remains a candidate for the Saints coaching vacancy, along with Moore (the Saints were reportedly planning to potentially fly to Philadelphia on Monday to meet with him).

“McCarthy left some good stuff here,” Jones said. “One of them was Brian. … It was time for a change.”

Jones indicated he wanted Schottenheimer to call plays, which likely wouldn’t have been the case had McCarthy remained coach.