Longtime Cowboys reporter Ed Werder pulled back the curtain a bit on why Dallas owner Jerry Jones made the surprising decision to hire Brian ScH๏τtenheimer for the franchise’s head coaching job before another former ᴀssistant was free.
“The Cowboys decided to promote OC Brian ScH๏τtenheimer over waiting for former OC Kellen Moore – coaching NFC Championship Game with Eagles Sunday – at least partly because they viewed his personality as more capable of commanding the room in terms of demanding accountability and establishing leadership,” Werder wrote on X.
His previous experience with the Cowboys — ScH๏τtenheimer has been Dallas’ offensive coordinator for the past two seasons — also partially had to do with him landing the position, per Werder.
“Continuity of offensive system and positive history with Dak Prescott other factors,” he continued.”
Jones went with ScH๏τtenheimer over Moore, who spent five seasons with the Cowboys from 2018-22, with the latter four seasons as the team’s offensive coordinator.
“Brian ScH๏τtenheimer is known as a career ᴀssistant,” Jones told ESPN after the hiring. “He ain’t Brian no more. He is now known as the head coach of the Dallas Cowboys.”
ScH๏τtenheimer’s father, Marty, won 200 games as a head coach of the Browns, Chiefs, Washington and Chargers.
The team also interviewed Leslie Frazier and Robert Saleh for the opening.
The ScH๏τtenheimer hiring comes after five years of Mike McCarthy at the helm.
McCarthy went 49-35 during his tenure in Dallas, but could not reach an agreement on a long-term contract after his deal expired earlier this month.
The Cowboys are reportedly targeting Matt Eberflus, the Bears head coach from 2022 until his firing late in 2024 and former linebackers coach for Dallas from 2011-17, for their defensive coordinator job.
