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When the Dallas Cowboys named Brian Schottenheimer as their head coach ahead of the 2025 season, it was quite a shock. No one expected Jerry Jones to go after a hot name such as Ben Johnson, but Schottenheimer was on no one’s radar.
Fans quickly understood the appeal, however, as Schottenheimer came off as an incredibly likable person and players seemed to genuinely love him. He gained even more respect by navigating the team through a tough campaign and enters year two with more promise.
Not everyone is buying in completely, though, with prominent team insider Bryan Broaddus throwing cold water on the Coach Schotty hype. In a recent appearance on 105.3 The Fan, Broaddus said Schottenheimer was not a difference-maker.
“They have not hired a difference-maker as a head coach,” Broaddus said. “I have questions about this one.”
He does agree that Schottenheimer is a great communicator, saying he knows how to get the team on the same page. He also appreciates that Schottenheimer was able to bring in a young, exciting defensive coordinator in Christian Parker. Still, he doesn’t think the Dallas head coach has the same coaching chops as his father, the late Marty Schottenheimer.
“I think this guy is great for getting everybody on the same page. I just don’t, man… If he was his old man, I would be so much happier. I don’t think he’s his dad, but I think he’s very good at smoothing everything over, you know? And listen, he did a great job of delegating and making sure they got the right defensive coordinator after the front office tried to saddle him with another bad defensive coordinator, you know?“
The elder Schottenheimer was a head coach for 21 seasons and while he never won a Super Bowl, he had a record of 200-126-1 and made 13 postseason appearances.
Is Brian Schottenheimer the right coach for the Cowboys?
Comparing Schottenheimer to his old man isn’t exactly a fair way to go about things. That said, the second-year head coach still has plenty to prove. He enters the season with the record of just 7-9-1.
He did coach an excellent offense, but the Dallas defense was a disaster in 2025. The Cowboys not only added Christian Parker, who replaces Matt Eberflus, but they also revamped their entire defense.
The sample size is small, but one would hope Schottenheimer showed enough during his rookie season for fans to believe he could guide the Cowboys to the playoffs with these improvements on defense. From there, he would still need to prove that he can win in the postseason, but the first step before answering any of those questions is to actually get into the playoffs.
He has the players, now he just needs to show he can be a difference-maker.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/cowboys/onsi as Cowboys Insider Makes Blunt Brian Schottenheimer Claim Before 2026 Season.
