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Brian Schottenheimer's first 26 games as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys have produced an 11-14-1 record, placing him among the NFL coaches most likely to be dismissed after the season, according to a lighthearted ranking by ThingsThatFeelTrue.com. With eight games remaining, Schottenheimer has an opportunity to demonstrate that his early tenure does not define his coaching abilities or future.
Two former head coaches who now analyze the NFL for NBC Sports—Jason Garrett and Mike Tomlin—provided a balanced, realistic assessment of Schottenheimer's situation during a Wednesday conference call with media members. Both men have walked in similar shoes and now offer insights from their broadcast perch.
Garrett: Cowboys Still in the NFC East Race
Garrett, who spent a decade as Dallas's head coach, pointed out that despite inconsistent play, the Cowboys remain in contention in a winnable division. He noted that Dallas still boasts the best offensive skill players and the best quarterback in the NFC East. While the defense has not met expectations, Garrett highlighted critical stops in key moments, particularly at the end of last week's game against the Colts.
"Like with every team in the league, there's a lot of blame to be spread around, but the ultimate question is, 'What are you going to do now?'" Garrett said. "Let yourself make the corrections and go forward. There's a lot of reason to hope and believe they can stay in the fight in the NFC East. That's really what the focus needs to be."
When asked whether the Cowboys' current position stems from poor coaching, Garrett offered a nuanced view. "For me, I always think it's a combination," he said. "You can probably look at some situations they've had this year for you as a coach to pull back and say, 'We could have handled that differently. Maybe we weren't quite as prepared as we needed to be for that.' Then you come back the next week, 'Hey, we've got to hone in. If that comes up again, we've got to get it addressed.' And another part of that is there are times the players have the same situation: 'Hey, I've got to make that throw, that tackle, that catch, whatever that thing is.'"
Garrett, who never reached an NFC championship game during his tenure but consistently commanded respect in the locker room, understands the delicate balance of managing player frustration. He noted that players can become just as frustrated with coaches as coaches do with players, and smoothing over those feelings is a key function of a successful coach. Under Schottenheimer, the Cowboys have yet to approach the standards set by Garrett or his successor, Mike McCarthy, who enjoyed three straight 12-5 seasons.
"The players have to take responsibility," Garrett said. "The best teams I've been around as a player and a coach, everyone kind of looks inward first, and you look at yourself as a coach and say, 'Boy, that plan wasn't what we needed it to be,' or, 'We need to handle that situation better,' and the players are doing the same kind of thing."
Tomlin: Cowboys Face Unique Pressure
Tomlin, who spent 19 seasons in Pittsburgh without a single losing record, has transitioned seamlessly into broadcasting, even making appearances on late-night talk shows. His Steelers teams never generated the level of criticism and noise that Garrett and now Schottenheimer have experienced—largely because they were the Steelers, not the Cowboys.
"Any time there's failure and inconsistency, it's always playing and coaching issues. That's been my experience," Tomlin said. "I also look at it from the perspective of it's like being a head coach and a quarterback. Oftentimes you get too much credit when things are going well and too much blame when things aren't. I just think that there's a certain amount of tension that comes with being the Cowboys, sometimes justly so, sometimes unjustly so. I'm sure Coach Schottenheimer and all parties involved are conditioned and used to that. They're insulating themselves from it. I'm sure they're all focused on what they need to do to improve and find consistency, rather than addressing the noise, which is probably always louder outside than it is inside."
That perspective rings true, just as Schottenheimer has eight more games to alter the perception that his team is not well-coached.
Originally reported by star_telegram.