Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones reportedly eyed a top NFL head coach to fill his vacancy, but he cost himself dearly with a signature self-sabotaging decision.
On Friday, the Cowboys announced that they promoted offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer to head coach. The 51-year-old has been on Dallas’ coaching staff since 2022, and despite his OC title, then-head coach Mike McCarthy was the offensive play-caller.
The Cowboys announced 12 days ago that they weren’t bringing back McCarthy, whose five-year contract had expired. If McCarthy had played his cards right, however, he could have landed a former NFL Coach of the Year.
During the latest episode of Scoop City, The Athletic NFL insider Dianna Russini reported that Jones had Mike Vrabel on his radar. The New England Patriots were aware of this and moved quickly to make the former fan favorite their new head coach:
“The Dallas Cowboys, too. A lot of people don’t know that. Guess who knew that? Robert Kraft knew that. Robert Kraft knew the Jones family had an interest (in Mike Vrabel).”
The goals:
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) January 24, 2025
1. Take care of the ball
2. Score
1-on-1 with offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels. pic.twitter.com/wazYuf1RHb
But of course, Jerry Jones simply waited too long to act. The Patriots hired Vrabel on Jan. 12, one day before the Cowboys officially parted ways with McCarthy. As usual, Jerry Jones’ mismanagement ruined his chances of landing Vrabel.
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The 49-year-old Vrabel went 54-45-0 over his six seasons with the Titans. They had four winning seasons, captured two AFC South division crowns and reached the AFC Championship Game in 2019.
Jerry Jones Better Have Made The Right Decision
Schottenheimer has nearly three decades of NFL/NCAA coaching experience on his resume, but he’s never held the top gig. Only time will tell if Jerry Jones got the latest hire right for once, but it’s safe to say that most Cowboys fans would have preferred Vrabel over Schottenheimer.
The Cowboys haven’t reached the NFC Championship Game since 1995, the longest active drought in the NFL. That starts with Jones’ never-ending mistakes as the acting GM, starting with his failure to find the proper successor to Jimmy Johnson.
