‘I’m Focused On Indianapolis’: Brian Schottenheimer Leaves Dallas Cowboys Trade Deadline Direction To Front Office
FRISCO, Texas — With the Nov. 10 NFL trade deadline eight days away, Dallas Cowboys coach Brian Schottenheimer said Monday his focus is on Sunday’s game at Indianapolis, not on whether Dallas should buy. Schottenheimer spoke a day after a 33-30 overtime loss to the Arizona Cardinals that dropped the Cowboys to 3-5.
Owner and general manager Jerry Jones, COO and executive vice president Stephen Jones, and vice president of player personnel Will McClay run the Cowboys’ trade work. Schottenheimer said they do a great job with it, while his job is beating the Colts.
“Yeah, I’m focused on Indianapolis,” Schottenheimer said. “I’m focused on finding a way for our guys to play well and win. Jerry and Stephen and Will do a great job with that, but my focus and my sole purpose right now is to find a way to play well and beat Indianapolis.”
Brian Schottenheimer Says Dallas Cowboys ‘Got Good Players’
Stephen Jones said Monday on 105.3 The Fan’s “K&C Masterpiece” that Dallas remains open to adding a player who can help. He does not think adding now would be a mistake.
“No, I think right now we’re convinced that we can,” Jones said. “We think we’re close, we think we can get this ship righted, and that we can have success.”
Schottenheimer said he believes the answer to what isn’t going right is already in the building. Consistency is what’s missing, in his view.
“I think so. I do. I think we’ve got good players,” Schottenheimer explained. “And, again, we have to play more consistently. That’s a word that I believe in.”
“And how do you do that? Well, you’ve got to go back to work. You got to do the little things right. You got to focus on the details,” Schottenheimer continued. “But I thought yesterday’s game is a great example of, you can play really well for three quarters, but if you don’t find a way to put the game away in the fourth quarter, this league will come up and bite you.”
Schottenheimer On Coaches’ Role In Joey Porter Jr. Trade
Dallas acquired cornerback Joey Porter Jr. from the Pittsburgh Steelers on Oct. 1 for a 2028 second-round pick and a 2027 sixth-round pick. Coaches and the front office watch cut-ups together and stay in constant contact on moves, according to Schottenheimer, though the front office drives them during the season.
“Yeah, we’re all involved,” Schottenheimer said. “We watch cut-ups together. We talk about it. They certainly do a great job of driving those during the season because we’re busy with game planning and things like that. But no, we have constant communication with that, and I feel great about the process.”
Porter left Sunday’s game with an ankle injury and is getting more tests. Schottenheimer said this week will show how close he is to returning. Kickoff against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium is set for noon CT Sunday on FOX.
