Brian Schottenheimer: Gotta Love the Process | Dallas Cowboys 2025

Brian Schottenheimer: Gotta Love the Process | Dallas Cowboys 2025

How’s everybody doing? Good morning. Dallas Morning News. Uh after looking at the tapes and talking to your coaches, just your overall review of the scrimmage yesterday. Yeah, I think you know, we talked to the team about this, you know, a little bit ago in the team meeting. I really three main takeaways, you know, uh Calvin, when you look at it, I thought, you know, we carried our pads a little high. That’s normal. You know, uh, we just got a little bit high on some things. So, we got moved off the ball at times, got knocked back in the run game on offense some, uh, you know, the big thing you’re teaching about there is you want to get your eyes underneath the chin and, uh, there was some good, but, uh, that’s one thing that jumped out. You know, hey, set our pads, play a little bit lower. That’s one. Uh, second thing would be kind of all about the ball. You know, we did not get any takeaways on defense. That’s something that this defense is going to thrive on. I really believe that. Uh, and then we had one interception on offense and really three other interception ops. Uh, and so that’s not the standard that we’re trying to do. And, uh, at the end of the day, what I kind of summed it up with, the third thing was like, it’s just about the details. It’s the details of, okay, going against a different team, a unit we haven’t seen. It doesn’t change anything. You know, we have rules and our rules are our rules and we do those things, but then you got to carry over the technique. So, great learning experience. I’m I’m I’m excited about the work we got. It was great clips and uh there was there was a lot of good as well, but those were the three main things that I kind of took took away from it. Carry our pads a little bit better, you know, all about the ball and then just overall attention to details. How’s Milton feeling today? Do you think he will be able to practice tomorrow? Yeah, he’s doing fine. He should he should be no problem. He he was throwing the ball around out of our talk throughout there. Oh my goodness. Where’d he go? Pour some out for him, you know. Should we pour a little something out for him? pull a lot out for him. Yeah, they just po Hey, look. We just pour a little Yeah, he had a long night. I got to know where he’s going, man. I haven’t found a good spot to go to yet. Uh oh, someone said something. Hey, write that down. Archery again. Uh you mentioned the, you know, carrying the pads a little high. Does that make you adjust your plan of hey, get the guys more in pads? I don’t know what the rules if there allows it or not. No. Again, Todd, I I I don’t read too much into it. Again, the first time doing it. Um, you know, it’s part of the process. You know, we will be in pads tomorrow. Um, but no, it doesn’t, you know, again, like I’m not overly concerned by it’s just a reminder, you know, you’re going, you know, for example, JT caught a ball out of the off a little check down. He was kind of running and it was thud and so the Rams guy came and JT was kind of relaxed a little bit and he got thudded and he went flying. And so, it’s it’s it’s more of that. I’m not I’m not concerned. It won’t change what we’re doing. Uh when we work in pads, it’s usually very physical, but I think it’s more just first time. They’re amped up. They’re excited about competing against somebody else. And uh easy easy correction. When we out here years ago, Parcels, they’d have meetings every night basically about the 53. And then Mike told us he would never have meetings about the 53. What’s your view on that? How how of how often are you guys talking about the 53? Well, number one, as as a staff, you know, we talk about it every day. You know, that’s and you can’t you can’t do the compete every day mantra and not do that because if you’re not talking about every day, how do you move guys from a third team to second team, second team to first team, all that stuff. So, like we talk about every day and you know, usually I talk with ownership and will mle every day about it. Uh to get into big settings and and have big long conversations, you know, we’ll we’ll do that today. Well, you know, just cuz coming off the the scrimmage yesterday getting ready for this game. But, uh, I would say it’s an ongoing process, you know, that we do, you know, every day, but it doesn’t have to be everybody sitting in a room. So, my point is it’s Bless you. The point is it’s there’s different ways to do it, Todd. And, uh, we kind of do it more individually, me, one-on-one with other people, Will, Stephen, Jerry, whatever it is. And then, you know, we’ll have a bigger one today. And then usually after most preseason games you have you have a sit down where you just evaluate the game and how it went and hey we did this well we need to improve this and um these are some of the main takeaways. John with the Athletic when you watched yesterday’s practice over again. How did you grade Brian shot number? Oh good question. Uh I give myself a C maybe a C minus. You know just we didn’t have we didn’t have as much success. Uh, but I also uh had a uh a lot of bullets I didn’t use. I actually screwed myself up. I got pissed. So, I called a the bomb. I called the bomb. I wasn’t supposed to call the bomb. The coaches were like, “Really? I thought we were leaving that out.” I was like, “Yeah, I got I got I kind of got pissed off.” And so, like, uh, we do have those plays. Just so you guys know, we have those plays, but literally I did that and I was like, “Man, that felt really good.” But now they know we have that play. So, um, but yeah, I was like I was like the squad just Okay. And then two young offensive linemen particularly Booker and Nate Thomas. What were your thoughts on that? I thought again both guys did a really good job. I’ll start with Nate. I mean he had the tough matchup, you know, against Verse and um again we showed a clip this morning of him doing a really great job. He kind of jumps, you know, he jump set him and got his hands on him. He’s so big and long and he’s a strong man. Uh but uh I thought he did a really nice job and then and I see Book making steps every day uh to get better. The power is there for sure. Um the big thing with him that he’s working on is sometimes when he’s setting out on a wide three technique, he sets he gets into good position relative position to the defensive tackle, but he keeps moving. And so we just got to get him to be a little stronger with his inside foot. But I would say both guys had uh number one great work, terrific amount of reps, but I thought they both did a nice job. Tommy, stylescowboys.com. When you look back at some of the things that you were doing in the run game dramatically up front, do you feel like the blocking was there and you feel like the running backs were doing their part? Are you feeling like there’s maybe some more steps you can take? No, it wasn’t a great day for us running the football, Tommy, it wasn’t. Um, you know, I think I talked a little bit yesterday about, you know, we didn’t play with great eyes. What do I mean by that? Like this is a disguise defense. So, all of a sudden, I’m in a combination block and Tad and I are working, you know, up to Patrick. And again, all of a sudden during the cadence, Patrick moves inside. Well, that changes my technique. It doesn’t change my rule, but if Patrick’s there, I can be much thicker on the inside portion of a double team when he slides inside and I got to be thinner because I got to get that guy accounted for. And so, we had, you know, too many um unaccounted for hats in the hole for the backs to deal with. And that’s again eye discipline. Uh a couple times we were bringing, you know, receivers across to handle issues off the edge and we were a little bit wide on our splits with the receivers. Uh it was really all of us. I mean it was just it wasn’t wasn’t design. It wasn’t just the players. It was a little bit of you know hey first scrimmage and you know but again got to cover people up in the run game to give your backs a chance and and quite honestly the backs a few times they were off their landmark and they weren’t pressing things enough. So we were getting movement and then you know the back will come back early. Well guess what if I’m combination up to to babe and the back cuts back and we’re on this angle and Babe falls back because of the back. That’s why it’s such a symphony. I mean, it’s such everything’s got to be tied together and it wasn’t tied very well together yesterday. So, something to improve on. Joe Hoy, Dallas Morning News. Obviously, Don Bla’s versatility is an asset for you guys, but also you’re trying to find who the best 11 guys are out on the field when you can. How do you balance kind of that multiplicity that you talk about while also trying to find the best 11 guys in that combination? You know, I think the thing we don’t worry about with Don is he’s got the ability to play both. You know, we’d like to figure out the nickel. You know, hey, okay, hey, what are we going to do? Can it be Don? Is it going to be Don? What do we want to do with that? Um, you know, that’s something that just as you go through the film, you know, you know, he’s got the ability to do it, but he’s also outstanding outside corner. And so, I think you’re looking we’re looking for different rotations and different things. And, you know, that was one of the things that came out of the the film yesterday, right? Like we gave up too many explosives. And I sat up here a couple days ago talking about that with, you know, one of the things Matt Ilu’s defense doesn’t do and the Cowboys defense won’t do is give up big plays. And we gave up too many big plays. I think it was like seven or eight explosives. And uh Devonte Adams still pretty good. Puka Nua still pretty good. They should keep those guys. Um but uh you know um definitely things for us you know that we’re trying looking and seeing different things. But again again again don’t read too much into it guys. We literally played two coverages. We literally kept all of our clubs in the bag. It’s like we’re out there playing with a seven iron. Uh hate to tell you guys but I’m going to be honest. Like we’re going to be playing with a seven iron most of the preseason. So, unless I get pissed. If I get pissed, the ball’s probably going down the field if I get pissed. Were they playing with a seven iron, you think? No, they were not. But again, they don’t need to. Sean’s been here what, seven, eight years? You know, people know who Shawn is. You know, I mean, they don’t know who we are. They don’t know what our defense is going to look like. You know, they were they were gaming us and doing things, which is great. You know, those are we we need those things, but no, because there’s nothing to protect for them. you know, he’s got they got plenty of footage of Shawn calling plays and, you know, Schula calling plays and things like that, but um us, we’re going to play a little closer to the vest because in year one, you can do that and why wouldn’t you? Kyleman’s Dallas Cowboys TV. Kind of speaking on that, what’s the importance or lack thereof of balancing confidence level against an opponent like that, but also trying to keep some of your stuff in the bag for the regular season? Well, I think we’re we should be able to execute whatever we call. I mean, you know, we’re a good team. We’re talented. We got good coaches. You know, I don’t again, it’s not like, you know, they dominated the scrimmage. You know, it was a scrimmage and we had good plays. We had bad plays. I think Turp had two touchdowns, you know, uh, a deep deep crosser that we hit him on one and, you know, obviously, you know, there was some some big plays. We hit CD open a couple times. George made some good plays and, uh, you know, so it wasn’t that. Um, it was more of like, okay, when you watch the film, it’s just like, okay, we’re we’re in the process of still improving and we’re in the process of teaching these guys, okay, why do details matter? Why does pad level matter? Why do we have to create, you know, uh, takeaways? And then, you know, like when you look at the run game, our linebackers, man, they played downhill, you know? I mean, they really did. They played downhill and um did a nice job punching the ball. The ball never came out. But here’s the other thing, you know, you’re not tackling. So, is it a four- yard run? Is it a three- yard run? Is it a eight yard run? I don’t know. I mean, you don’t know unless you’re really tackling. And um that’s the thing when you look at scrimmage, you just kind of like, okay, let’s, you know, take it with a grain of salt and just evaluate the people. That’s what we’re doing right now. We are we are evaluating our players so that we have to make some really really difficult decisions. It wasn’t about scheme. It was about can they do their job against the guy that they’re matched up against. And my belief with that and I will always believe this is when it’s simple, they should be able to play free. They should be able to play fast and they should be able to do their job at a high level. And if they’re not, then that that makes the discussions for us a little bit uh you know longer in terms of who we keep and who we don’t. Nick, Nick Harris, Forest Star Telegram. Looking back at the joint practice, how much more can you get out of a session like that versus a normal practice out here? And how did you like the overall effect? I thought it was great. Uh I thought the competition was great. You know, um I loved watching the special teams video last night with Nick. You know, we got some great work in our punt protection. They were running some great twists. Uh our gunners, you know, um and Vice, they had some great battles. There was a great one I showed to the team this morning. And it was uh Crop and um Rochelle going after their they were the vice and they just I mean it was awesome. I mean they just stoned them and they worked together and it was really really really cool. Um but in general it’s kind of what we thought. We got a lot of plays. We had some call it periods. We had some, you know, scripted periods. We had a two-minute. I thought the offense responded really well with the two-minute drive late. Like that was just really really good. We went right down the field and you know that that shows our capability. I talk to the guys all the time. You know, Nick, I say, you know, you can’t win games in the first quarter. You don’t. You can’t win them in the second. You don’t win them in the third. When do you win them? You win them in the fourth quarter. And so, I think that kind of proves the point of what I was trying to make. Yeah. We didn’t have a great scrimmage, per se, often back and forth offensively, boom. But then when the game was on the line, it’s 23-21. We need to put a drive together in two minutes. We weren’t right down the field. And so, um, to me, again, there’s so many great things to take away. And I told the guys this morning, I said, “Hey guys, I’m excited. you know, you’re going to watch this film and you’re going to see we can get so much better, you know, but you got to love the process. You got to love the grind. You know, you don’t wake up in training camp on a whatever the day is, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, whatever the day is, and you’re like, “Hey, we’re Super Bowl champs.” It doesn’t work like that. You have good days, you have bad days, you have so so days, you have days you’re a little sore and you don’t feel like practicing, but you have to keep doing it. Did anything yesterday kind of lead towards your decision on starters in the preseason, or is that still a work in progress? Yeah, it’s still a work in progress. Again, we’ll, you know, there’ll be a handful of guys that don’t play, but, you know, I would say there’ll be some guys that play throughout the preseason. Don’t just look at it with just the Rams. You know, we have a number uh of snaps we’re trying to get for certain guys throughout the entire preseason. So, I wouldn’t read into it, oh, who’s playing against the Rams? Who’s playing against, you know, Baltimore, Atlanta? There’s more of a number. Okay, in these two or three games, how many snaps do we want for this guy? And those numbers can change. That’s why again when we look at it, you know, I’ll share it maybe later in the week, you know, but for the most part, you know, those numbers are very flexible. Garrett Podell, CBS Sports. Brian, you talked about game planning and keeping it basic with your seven iron. How different is game planning entering a preseason game, keeping it seven iron versus regular season and doing all that? Uh, I mean, it’s obviously extremely different because, you know, you look at your call sheet and you’re like, okay, well, we’re not showing this. It’s amazing to me, if you’re looking at 50 passes, you’re going, “Okay, well, we’ll show those 12.” And you’re like, “There’s 38 of them.” You know, like, “We’re not showing these 38 plays and you’re like, “No, we show them every day in practice, so we don’t need to show them to the world.” You know, Vic Fangio probably has people out here with cameras watching our practice right now. You know, I mean, like that’s part of the deal. Um, but, uh, yeah, to me it’s very different. You know, like we knew we were getting three, four work. We needed three four work. We wanted it. You know, I think the Rams are one of the best duo running teams in the league. Their toss crack games are great. You know, so there’s things we can learn. I mean, the big run that they hit, you know, they they got the edge on us. We didn’t do a great job popping the crack block, which is the first block, and then we went underneath a couple blocks, and that’s a recipe for disaster in the run game. But for the most parts, you know, like I said, the linebackers are playing downhill and we’re not tackling. So, but it’s very, very different. It’s very it’s it’s it’s much quicker when you’re not showing your stuff. Coach Michelle Monte WA. Um, you kind of just touched on it after watching the film yesterday and I guess really just evaluating practice up to this point. What do you feel? You highlighted the linebackers, but what do you feel like is the biggest point of emphasis for what you need to improve upon when it comes to stop? Uh, I think main thing would be the just the overall pad level. You know, the overall pad level, the fits. Flu says it all the time. When you guys get a chance to talk to him, he’ll say it again. No house guest. you know, you when you’re playing a team like really us and like um the Rams, when you’re in cut splits and you’re cracking safeties, the corners have a huge piece of the run fit because when I when the receiver goes to block the safety who’s down tight, the corner’s got to close the distance. And we did a really good job of that yesterday, there’s some fundamental things we need to clean up with keeping your outside foot up and playing with great extension and things like that. Um but again, we’re not tackling. So it’s like, oh, did Ka make that play? Yeah, he probably did. But, you know, we’re not tackling guys to the ground. But, um, just the the the symphony is the best word I can think of right now on on little sleep of the run game stuff. You know, both running the football blocking scheme wise, and then fitting the runs and all that stuff. It it it takes it takes a lot of orchestration and time and um different than when you throw a ball up to an elite receiver on either side, they make a play. Not that that doesn’t take timing. It does, but sometimes dudes just are dudes. Sorry, guys. at a time. Thanks, guys.

Head coach Brian Schottenheimer shares more insight from the Cowboys joint practice with the Rams, reflects on the run blocking performance, and how they can improve moving forward.

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