The mind of Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones can be impossible to read at times. That's why the odds of who will be the next head coach of the Cowboys after the team and Mike McCarthy parted ways after five seasons keep appearing and disappearing on sportsbooks everywhere.
The latest odds to appear on DraftKings, per Pro Football Talk, had Dallas offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer as the odds-on favorite at -250. Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore -- who has also been a player, position coach and offensive coordinator in Dallas -- was the favorite prior to Scottenheimer, but was most recently listed at +250. Colorado head coach Deion Sanders, a Super Bowl champion cornerback with the Cowboys in 1995, opened as the favorite but was listed with the seventh-best odds at last posting, per PFT. That lines up with the latest reporting that Sanders isn't expected to have a scheduled interview for the position. The odds have since been taking down, which PFT notes has happened several times since the Cowboys head coach position opened up.
So what's the case for Schottenheimer rising to the top of the latest odds list? Let's break it down.
For starters, Jones highly values familiarity, so Schottenheimer checks that box after being with the team since 2022. He served as a consultant that season before becoming Dallas' offensive coordinator in 2023 when Moore, who was the Cowboys OC from 2019-2022, departed to take the Los Angeles Chargers offensive coordinator position that offseason.
It's worth noting Schottenheimer was not the offensive play-caller in Dallas as McCarthy took the reins back as the team's play-caller that year -- something he had done for the vast majority of his tenure as the Green Bay Packers head coach. The Cowboys led the NFL in points per game (29.9) with quarterback Dak Prescott leading the NFL in touchdown passes (36) and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb leading the league in receptions (135). Dallas' offense took a major step back in 2024 with Prescott going down for the season in Week 9 with a hamstring tear, but undrafted running back Rico Dowdle did rush for over 1,000 yards, a mark which he hit in his 16th game played.
Schottenheimer also provides continuity for Prescott, another thing Jones highly values. When McCarthy was hired as the team's head coach in 2020, Jones insisted Moore be retained on McCarthy's incoming staff as the offensive coordinator. That arrangement worked for three years until McCarthy opted to return to the play-caller role in 2023. Schottenheimer does have 12 years of offensive play-calling experience as an OC with the New York Jets (2006-2011), Rams (2012-2014) and Seattle Seahawks (2018-2020).
Ultimately, the elephant in the room is Jones' reported desire to have future Hall of Fame Cowboys tight end Jason Witten on his next coaching staff as an assistant/"heir apparent" before eventually becoming Dallas' head coach at some point down the road. Jones' ask to McCarthy about this arrangement was reportedly one of the major sticking points in the two sides parting ways. Schottenheimer, who has never been an NFL head coach, might be a candidate who would accept such a request to add Witten, whose only coaching experience is at the private high school level in Texas.
If Schottenheimer got the job and hired Witten as an assistant, that would make him Jones' Wade Phillips 2.0. in a way. Phillips was hired as the Cowboys head coach in 2007, and Jason Garrett, a Jones' favorite from being a longtime Cowboys backup quarterback in the 1990s glory years, was brought on in 2007 as the team's offensive coordinator after only two years of NFL coaching experience with the Miami Dolphins as their quarterbacks coach (2005-2006). Garrett was given the title of assistant head coach on top of his OC position in 2008, and he became the team's full-time head coach in 2011 after serving as the interim in 2010 in the wake of Phillips' in-season firing.
