Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones launched into an impassioned defense of his hire of Brian Schottenheimer at Monday’s introductory press conference.
Responding to critics who felt that Jones’ decision to promote Schottenheimer to head coach was a safe and uninspiring move, Jones argued that he was actually taking a huge risk, but that Schottenheimer’s pedigree and standing within the game was a major factor in the hire.
“I get my proverbial a– kicked over needing people in my comfort zone. Without this thing being about me in any way, if you don’t think I can’t operate out of my comfort zone, you’re so wrong it’s unbelievable,” Jones said. “This is as big a risk as you can take. No head coaching experience.
“Let me share something with you. With all of that, you just heard him reference his osmosis, his family. Anybody in this room that doesn’t believe the apple doesn’t go far from the tree has missed it someplace down the road, especially if there was an effort to make it that way, and there was an effort. But then you go around to the countless number of coaches that Schotty has served on staff with and been around, and countless players. How often do you have someone that has 25 years of working through the human relationship and aspiring to learn, have his ears and eyes wide open and looking for techniques that make coaches better?”
— Ari M (@AriMeirov) January 27, 2025
In Jones’ mind, Schottenheimer has plenty of experience and knows his way around people, and that breeds success. It’s also still a risk given Schottenheimer’s lack of head coaching experience.
Jones has no doubt heard the criticism about his hire, with even some former players suggesting the Cowboys blew it by simply promoting from Mike McCarthy’s staff. Jones obviously disagrees, but after the infamous “all in” offseason of 2024 and what it ultimately turned out to be, many will be skeptical that he and his hire will be able to back up this confidence.
