Furious Dallas Cowboys fans have flooded social media with criticism of the franchise’s shock decision to hire Brian Schottenheimer as their new head coach.
It was announced on Friday night that the offensive coordinator had been chosen by owner Jerry Jones to replace Mike McCarthy, whose five-year contract with Dallas expired earlier this month.
The 51-year-old Schottenheimer, son of the late NFL coach Marty Schottenheimer, has 25 years of NFL coaching experience – including 14 as an offensive coordinator – but none as a head coach.
He is the ninth coach hired by Jones since he bought the team in 1989 and fired the only coach the Cowboys had for their first 29 seasons, Pro Football Hall of Famer Tom Landry.
Schottenheimer is also the seventh hire for Jones since the last time the Cowboys advanced past the divisional round of the playoffs in 1995, when the club won its fifth Super Bowl title. An introductory news conference is planned for Monday.
But, in what is being described as an uninspiring decision by the ailing franchise and its 82-year-old owner, Cowboys fans are venting their fury on social media.
The Dallas Cowboys are hiring Brian Schottenheimer as their new head coach
The offensive coordinator has been chosen by Jerry Jones to replace Mike McCarthy
But Cowboys fans are furious with the decision and some have vowed to ‘boycott’ games
One commented: ‘The franchise waited until 10pm at night to make this announcement because it’s such a joke’.
A second posted: ‘I am not going to a single Cowboys game at AT&T Stadium until Jerry Jones is out of the picture. He needs to go. Stephen Jones needs to go too. I’m sick.’
Another wrote: ‘Literally the worst Head Coach hire I have ever seen… Didn’t even call plays last season and he got a job where he has to create a game plan on both sides of the ball…’
A fourth posted: ‘This is the moment I might quite the fanbase’.
‘What are we doing here?’ asked another. ’51 years old, hasn’t gotten any looks as a HC in years and he’s hired? This team is unserious.’
One fan added: ‘Lifelong fan here you have alienated me to the point that I no longer have an interest in the performance of this team. Don’t care about winning? Now neither do I.’
The fury continued with another declaring: ‘Good Lord… would have been better off keeping Mike McCarthy if this is the best they could do.’
A passionate fan declared it a ‘despicable decision’ and vowed to ‘boycott this organization after 40 years!’.
Jones hired McCarthy, a Super Bowl winner with Green Bay in 2010, in hopes of ending what is now the longest stretch of any NFC team without reaching a conference championship game.
Dallas made three consecutive postseason trips in 2021 to 2023, but won just one playoff game.
Schottenheimer joined the Cowboys as a consultant in 2022 and moved into the offensive coordinator role when McCarthy took over play-calling duties a year later.
Prescott had one of the best years of his career in the first season with that arrangement, finishing as the runner-up in NFL MVP voting, but the Cowboys stumbled late before a shocking home wild-card loss to Green Bay.
The Dallas offense played a big role in a 27-0 first-half deficit, and the Cowboys trailed by 32 points in the fourth quarter of that 48-32 defeat.
Schottenheimer´s second season with Prescott was a struggle almost from the start, even before Prescott´s season-ending hamstring injury. The Cowboys were 7-10, ending a three-year run of 12-5 finishes.
McCarthy, who got his NFL coaching start on Marty Schottenheimer´s Kansas City staff in 1993, brought in the younger Schottenheimer after one season as Jacksonville’s passing game coordinator.
Schottenheimer was Russell Wilson´s offensive coordinator in Seattle from 2018-20, when the Seahawks finished in the top 10 in scoring offense all three years but stumbled in the playoffs each time.
Schottenheimer has been in charge of the offense led by Dak Prescott in recent seasons
Tom Brady shakes hands with Schottenheimer prior to their game against Cleveland Browns
The first stint as an offensive coordinator for Schottenheimer lasted six seasons with the New York Jets from 2006-11, followed by three years in the same role with the St. Louis Rams.
The Cowboys held a virtual interview with Philadelphia offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, who was Prescott´s play-caller from 2019-22. Moore´s Eagles play Washington at home in the NFC title game Sunday.
Dallas had in-person interviews with two former head coaches in Robert Saleh and Leslie Frazier.
Saleh agreed Friday to return to San Francisco as defensive coordinator, the job he held before the New York Jets hired him. The Jets fired Saleh five games into his fourth season as coach in October. Frazier is the assistant head coach in Seattle.
Jones had informal talks with Colorado coach Deion Sanders. The Hall of Fame cornerback played five seasons for the Cowboys and helped them win their last Super Bowl.
