FRISCO, Texas — Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said the Dallas Cowboys send released players out of the building with specific coaching notes, down to which position coach they should spend more time with at their next stop.
Schottenheimer described the release meeting from both sides on Thursday, five days after Dallas cut its roster to 53 players.
Players walk into the room, see him sitting there, and know what is coming.
“I think at the end of the day, I think it’s a tough day for everybody,” Schottenheimer said. “It’s a tough day for the person like myself that has to inform them that you’re releasing them. It’s a tough day for the person that has to hear that news. A lot of things go through your mind. I’m big on real relationships, and I’m big on having open and honest conversation.”
“But at the end of the day, whether they come back like Joe Milton did or they move on, I want to leave them, and the staff wants to leave them, with some feedback of, okay, if you’re not back, when you go to Team X, spend more time in the special teams coach’s office,” Schottenheimer continued. “Spend more time on this or that. Give them some feedback, but we also give them feedback from a positive nature.”
Brian Schottenheimer On The Room Itself
Schottenheimer has been fired several times over a coaching career that began in 1997 with the St. Louis Rams.
“And so it’s an uncomfortable feeling,” Schottenheimer explained. “They walk into a room, they see you sitting there, and they’re like, okay, what’s going on? And I just think you want to make it as at least less uncomfortable as possible.”
The Dallas Cowboys’ Cutdown Week
Dallas trimmed to 53 players Sunday, releasing running backs Jaydon Blue and Phil Mafah and defensive end Sam Williams among others. The Cowboys waived Joe Milton III on Monday to make room for a waiver claim on running back Emari Demercado.
Milton cleared and re-signed to the practice squad Wednesday. Blue signed with the Philadelphia Eagles practice squad the same week.
Dallas built a 17-player practice squad that includes several players from its training camp roster. The Cowboys open the regular season Sept. 13 at MetLife Stadium against the New York Giants. Kickoff is 7:20 p.m. CT on NBC.
