Dallas Cowboys Owner/GM Jerry Jones knew exactly what he was doing when he announced the hiring of OC Brian Schottenheimer as the new head coach late Friday night.
He knew that social media would go berserk over hiring a coach who has never been the main man on the sideline, and never even called plays in his three years in Dallas.
Jerry also knew that the news of his new head coach would take the spotlight away from the Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Commanders, the Cowboys’ rivals facing off against each other in the NFC Championship Game.
I was thoroughly impressed with HC Brian Schottenheimer and his responses to the tough questions he was asked today. He said the right things, and I truly hope he is the man to lead this team to the promised land. I just wish he didn’t have ownership meddling in his plan.
Jerry and Stephen Jones, on the other hand, drew the ire of the fanbase for their constant deflection of the questions asked, and the incessant ramblings about risks and investments made over 30 years ago.
The purpose of this article is to highlight their answers, and educate Cowboys Nation on how they are trying to pull the wool over our eyes. Save it, Jerry and Stephen. We see right through your bull-Schott.
I Think This Might Make Something Special
Question: What made you decide that Brian Schottenheimer was the right guy to coach the Dallas Cowboys?
This seemed like a pretty straightforward question, but somehow Jerry turned it into a nearly 12-minute monologue where he touched on several subjects that barely scratched the surface of Dallas Morning News Reporter Calvin Watkins’ question.
He started by listing assistant coaches he had during his playing time at Arkansas, and how all of them were head coaches somewhere else shortly afterward.
Then, he spoke about how he didn’t know Jimmy Johnson was the answer in 1989, but he knew him personally, and he felt deep down like it was going to work out. He said the same thing about Barry Switzer.
Jerry spoke nothing about how Schottenheimer could improve the product on the field. According to his response, Jones hired him because of his familiarity with the game of football (his father Marty was an NFL coach) and because he gets along with the players.
He even said, “How often do you get the chance to hire a head coach who has almost 30 years experience in coaching?” I don’t know, Jerry. There are probably 50 other assistants in the NFL who can match that experience, and even a few who have called an offense in the past five years.
I Know Our Fans Are Not Gonna Believe
Question: What will you guys do differently to help Brian (Schottenheimer) and end this 29-year drought of not making it to a Super Bowl?
Stephen Jones took the reins of this question from ESPN NFL Nation’s Todd Archer. What Todd really wanted to ask was if they were going to be rid of their ancient ways and actually add some quality free agents to help their head coach.
The younger Jones took it in a direction that I didn’t expect, and he is currently the object of fans’ rage on social media after referring to the drought as “a drought people say we are in”, and he actually made air quotes with his fingers.
Stephen, do you know what air quotes mean? As an educated man, I expect that you do. Since we have established that you are intelligent enough to understand how air quotes work, how exactly do they apply to the words that came out of your mouth?
Are you insinuating that the 29-year drought is some sort of myth concocted by the media and fans? Sir, it is a real thing, and you are smack dab in the middle of it. Read the room.
He went on to talk about taking a look at how free agency is handled, and making changes if necessary. We all know there won’t be any changes, and you can call me a Negative Nelly, but they haven’t exactly won the benefit of the doubt.
Jerry then stepped in and told a story about speaking with anyone who ever coached Schottenheimer and all of the good things they had to say. Again, completely deflecting the original question.
We Want Continuity, But We Also Want Change
Question: Can you tell us a little bit about the conversations you had with Brian (Schottenheimer) and when you started to feel comfortable with making him the next coach of the Dallas Cowboys?
The Athletic’s Jon Machota asked a question to try and get us inside the room when conversations were being had, but his question towards Stephen was met with more of the same deflection.
He said something interesting that I interpreted as them simply not knowing what it is that they want. No other NFL team uses oxymoron to describe their situation as much as the Dallas Cowboys.
Jones said, “We want continuity, but we also want change.”
Stephen realizes that continuity and change are opposites, right? Fans wanting wholesale change while the Jones continue to maintain the same business practices in place is why Cowboys Nation is so angry.
They are so out of touch with their own reality, but they are also oblivious to it because they are inside their millionaire bubbles. Stephen went on to talk about how hiring Schottenheimer is keeping up with league trends.
He and Jerry see hiring Schottenheimer as a first-time head coach as not only keeping up with the times, but they are better off than other teams because they feel Schottenheimer’s 25 years of experience is a better option than one of those “offensive wizards” everybody is hiring these days.
Yes, he actually used air quotes again to describe the offensive wizards that other teams are going after for head coaches, but he feels the Cowboys have a better version in Brian Schottenheimer. The delusion is real.
This Is The Best Way That We Can Go To The Playoffs and Win
Question: How do you get the fans to buy in to Brian Schottenheimer?
This question was specifically for Jerry, and big props to Nick Harris of the Fort Worth-Star Telegram for having the footballs to ask it.
Jerry immediately acknowledged that he knows fans have been patient, and that the Cowboys have not gotten the job done. He also acknowledged that he knows fans want playoff success.
He assured them that hiring Brian Schottenheimer as the next head coach of the Dallas Cowboys was the best way to get to the playoffs and win. Really?
How would you know it’s the best way if you hardly looked at any other options? We can’t possibly be expected to believe these words were your actual thinking, and if they are, then the delusion is strong, and maybe we don’t have any hope after all.
The Draft Is Where Your Real Depth Should Be
Question: (In relation to free agency and the salary cap) Are there any strategies you can take from your opponents to help the Dallas Cowboys moving forward?
This was a fantastic question that we all wanted someone to ask, and the brave one to emerge from the crowd was dallascowboys.com writer Patrik “No C” Walker.
He worded it nicely, but what Patrik really meant was whether or not Jerry and Stephen were willing to change their conservative views towards free agency and open up those pocket books to match how teams like the Philadelphia Eagles can reach the Super Bowl by being aggressive in free agency.
Stephen’s response gives me no confidence that things will change. He acknowledged how other teams have found success in free agency, but quickly brought it back to his point that real depth is acquired through the draft.
He did cite injuries as a big reason why so many rookies had to play this season, but let’s not forget that talent was lacking because they refused to add players in free agency in the first place.
If That Bank Account’s Full, That Doesn’t Mean You Got Money
Jerry couldn’t leave Stephen alone on an island with the previous question, so he decided to tell everyone an odd story about driving up in a five-year old Bronco to climb into his private jet after he bought the Cowboys.
He used that story as a reason to point out that you “can’t have it all”, and adding expensive free agents would be their version of having it all. Jerry proclaimed himself a great manager of the salary cap, and specifically wanted the fans to know that he is.
In his experience, if the bank account is full, that doesn’t mean you have money. It just means you haven’t paid your bills yet, alluding to the fact that he thinks other teams spending money on free agents and manipulating the salary cap is playing with money they don’t have.
Both he and Stephen keep mentioning that eventually the bill will come due for teams that manage their rosters this way, but I have yet to see one of these teams suffer. It tells me that free agency might be the way to go, or it should at least be a larger part of the Cowboys’ plan.
To my horror, Jerry even mentioned the phrase “all-in”, and explained how part of that all-in were the contracts for QB Dak Prescott and WR CeeDee Lamb.
I’ve Never Stopped Dreaming Of That
Question: You’re in the unique position as a GM to have just made your 7th head coach hire. Most GM’s don’t have that luxury. How can you convince fans that your formula is working?
It was a great question from Dallas Morning News’ Tim Cowlishaw, but again, Jerry went off on a tangent and didn’t answer the question.
He started off by talking about the incredible turnover in the last 10-15 years of both general managers and head coaches, and weirdly turned it into a life-long dream for the Dallas Cowboys to play in games like he saw the Eagles win the night before.
Jerry, if that really is your dream, then you should remove yourself from the general manager position because the way you have been doing things since 1996 has not worked.