Brian Schottenheimer on the job: Building culture, balancing being head coach, play caller

New York Times

09-04-2025

After finalizing a four-year, $80 million deal to remain with the Dallas Cowboys last month, Osa Odighizuwa got a congratulatory phone call from Brian Schottenheimer.
But the team's new head coach wanted to do more for the defensive tackle. He found out the restaurant Odighizuwa was going to celebrate with family and friends later that night and sent over a bottle of champagne.
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'We have the guy we want,' Odighizuwa said before recently sharing that story on the 'Up & Adams Show.' 'The team, the locker room loves Schotty. I think that's part of where it starts. He's a smart guy. And just the person that he is, he's a good dude.
'He's the kind of coach that you can run through a wall for.'
That might have been a surprising move by some coaches, but gestures like that seem to line up with what Schottenheimer is all about.
'I'm really good with X's and O's,' Schottenheimer said during his introductory news conference at The Star in late January, 'but I'm great with people.'
His goal is to use those people skills to build a strong culture within the team.
'Because it's what matters,' he said last week from the annual league meeting. 'This is all really fun and cool, the cameras and everything, but let's be honest, there's going to be some s—– days. This is the National Football League. It's going to be tough. If you preach that you're a family, and if you preach that 'I love you, I care about you,' then why wouldn't you take steps to get to know people?'
Schottenheimer said half of his day during this time of year is spent reaching out to players, building that family atmosphere.
'I don't want to talk to these guys right now about football,' he said. 'The biggest mistake people make, and I'm guilty of it looking back, is you think, 'I got to get all the football in. I got to get those plays in. That's a great route combination.' That's overrated. It's overrated. It's a people business. We want to spend time getting to know one another and building this culture, which is going to be about competing every day to make these guys the best versions of themselves. Not just as football players, but as a husband, as a father, as a Christian, whatever it is, musician if that's what they want. It's important to me.'
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Schottenheimer wasn't the initial favorite to replace Mike McCarthy. He had been in the building the previous three seasons, including the last two as offensive coordinator. But Cowboys owner Jerry Jones thought of Schottenheimer as more likely to be the team's next offensive play caller. The more conversations they had during the coaching search, the more Jones thought he had found his next play caller and head coach.
'I like his football knowledge,' Jones said at the league meeting. 'I like his demeanor. I think for 51 years old, he has the most unbelievable background in volume of NFL experience, because he's been on that many staffs. He's been around it that long. That plus the fact that we got to work with him and be around him for three years let us have a good feel for how he works with players. The players' input about what kind of coach and how much confidence they have in him, how he handles solving problems, both on and off the field, people skills, all of that, we had a real good read.
'As we got more involved, the more I looked at it, the more I felt, 'Wait a minute here, we might have an opportunity to take advantage of all the things I've just mentioned.' So, I'm glad to have him.'
There shouldn't be much doubt about how Schottenheimer will handle things behind the scenes. The expectation is that it will be a well-run program where he will let the front office, scouts and assistant coaches do their jobs. He's been around the NFL as an assistant for 25 years. He has a good idea of how to successfully structure a program. The biggest question will be how he handles calling the offensive plays while also being head coach.
That's a lot to ask of even a veteran head coach. How he performs in that area really won't be known until the games begin in September. How will he handle late-game situations like clock management, challenges, etc.? These are the same questions that will have to be answered by other new head coaches, like Ben Johnson with the Chicago Bears. Just because he was an outstanding offensive coordinator doesn't guarantee he'll be a great head coach. There's just so much more on your plate when you have both jobs.
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The first thing Schottenheimer mentioned when asked last week about the challenges of being a play caller and first-year head coach was 'using your time wisely.'
'Making sure you spend enough time touching all the departments,' he added. 'That's been something I've spent quite a bit of time on early on. The good news for me is the offensive side of it is going to have some changes, but not as many as most first-time head coaches. And the benefit for me, quite honestly, is having been here, I know all the pieces. So like talking to some of the other first-time head coaches, if they need to get something done from a contractual standpoint, they're learning the names. If they have to get something done with travel, they're learning, 'OK, who do I go to?' I know all those people. That's good.'
A key for him has been having constant communication with defensive coordinator and former Bears head coach Matt Eberflus, offensive coordinator Klayton Adams and special teams coordinator Nick Sorensen. It's all part of his time management process.
'We have conversations every day,' Schottenheimer said. 'But it becomes a lot and as you get into the draft, you have to put things into buckets. So the bucket that's coming up very quickly is going to be the draft. Our players are coming back. I can't wait to get them back in the building.
'If you don't know how to manage your time, this is not a good profession to be in.'