Brian Schottenheimer (born October 16, 1973) is an American professional
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
coach who is the
head coach
A head coach, senior coach, or manager is a professional responsible for training and developing athletes within a sports team. This role often has a higher public profile and salary than other coaching positions. In some sports, such as associat ...
for the
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...
of the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
(NFL). He previously served as the
offensive coordinator
An offensive coordinator (OC) is a Coach (sport), coach responsible for a gridiron football team's offense (American football), offense. Generally, the offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator represent the second ...
for the Dallas Cowboys,
Seattle Seahawks,
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...
,
St. Louis Rams and the
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia (UGA or Georgia) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Athens, Georgia, United States. Chartered in 1785, it is the oldest public university in th ...
and also served as an assistant coach for the
Washington Redskins
The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...
,
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...
,
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...
, and
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...
.
Early life
Schottenheimer was born in
Denver, Colorado
Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...
. He prepped at
Blue Valley High School in
Overland Park, Kansas
Overland Park ( ) is the largest city in Johnson County, Kansas, United States, and the List of cities in Kansas#Highest population listing, second-most populous city in the state of Kansas. It is one of four principal city, principal cities in ...
, where he quarterbacked his team to the Kansas Class 5A state football championship in 1991, while earning first-team all-state and honorable mention high school
All-American
The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...
honors.
He threw for 2,586 yards and 26 touchdowns in his career.
His success at Blue Valley High School led to a scholarship for the
University of Kansas.
Playing career
College
Schottenheimer first attended the
University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas, where he was a member of the
Kansas Jayhawks football
The Kansas Jayhawks football program is the college football, intercollegiate football program of the University of Kansas. The program is classified in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I Bowl Subdivi ...
team for a single season in 1992 serving as a backup to starting quarterback Chip Hilleary.
He transferred to the
University of Florida
The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...
in Gainesville, Florida, sat out a year as required by NCAA transfer rules, and then played for coach
Steve Spurrier's
Florida Gators football
The Florida Gators football program represents the University of Florida (UF) in American football, American college football. Florida competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the ...
team from
1994
The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations.
In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...
to
1996.
2011 Florida Gators Football Media Guide
'', University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 76, 174, 185 (2011). Retrieved August 31, 2011.
He served as backup to starting quarterback
Danny Wuerffel, and was a member of the Gators' 1996
Bowl Alliance national championship team. During his college playing career, he completed twenty-five of thirty-eight passes (65.8%) for 290 yards and two touchdowns, and also ran for a touchdown.
Schottenheimer graduated from Florida with a bachelor's degree in exercise and sports science in 1997.
Coaching career
Early career
Schottenheimer was an assistant coach from 1997 to 2005 with the
St. Louis Rams,
Kansas City Chiefs,
Syracuse Orange, and
USC Trojans
The USC Trojans (also Southern California Trojans) are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles. While the men's teams are nicknamed the ...
, including as quarterback coach for the
Washington Redskins
The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...
and
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...
.
He was an assistant under his father,
Marty Schottenheimer, in three of those coaching positions:
Kansas City Chiefs,
Washington Redskins
The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...
, and
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...
.
New York Jets
In 2006, he became the offensive coordinator for the
New York Jets
The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...
.
The team made the playoffs, the offense improved from the previous season and quarterback
Chad Pennington was named NFL Comeback Player of the Year.
In 2007, Schottenheimer's name was floated around as being a possible replacement for the departed
Nick Saban as the
Miami Dolphins head coach. He later removed his name from consideration for the Dolphins head coaching position, preferring to stay in New York. The Jets went 4–12 and failed to make the playoffs.
In 2008, the offense scored 405 points, just the third time in franchise history reaching the 400-point mark. Led by quarterback
Brett Favre and Pro Bowl running back
Thomas Jones, the team registered 42 offensive touchdowns (their most in a decade). Jones would also lead the AFC with 1,312 rushing yards and break the Jets single-season record with 13 rushing touchdowns. The Jets experienced a late season collapse and missed the playoffs despite an 8–3 start.
In 2009, after
Eric Mangini was fired, Schottenheimer was one of the first candidates interviewed for the open head coaching position. However, he eventually lost out to
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its home g ...
defensive coordinator
Rex Ryan. The Jets reached the AFC Championship Game with rookie quarterback
Mark Sanchez.
On January 13, 2010, Schottenheimer announced that he was staying with the Jets as offensive coordinator and would not interview for the head coaching vacancy with the
Buffalo Bills
The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...
. The team finished with an 11–5 record and advanced to the AFC Championship Game for the second consecutive season.
In 2011, the Jets scored only 50 points in the last three games (all losses), while finishing with an 8-8 record and the 29th rank in total offense. On January 6, 2012, he was interviewed for the
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...
head coaching position. On January 10, 2012, the Jets parted ways with Schottenheimer.
St. Louis Rams
On January 21, 2012, Schottenheimer was named the offensive coordinator of the
St. Louis Rams under new head coach
Jeff Fisher. The offense ranked 25th at the end of the season.
In 2013, starting quarterback
Sam Bradford tore his left
ACL on a run out of bounds after a hit from safety
Mike Mitchell in the Week 7 game against the
Carolina Panthers.
Kellen Clemens was named the starter for the last 9 games and the offense was ranked 21st.
In 2014, Bradford suffered an injury to the same ACL after being sacked in the third preseason game against the
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...
and missed the entire season.
Shaun Hill and
Austin Davis were the starters at quarterback at different points during the season. The team finished ranked 28th in total offense (314.7 yards per game) and 21st in scoring (20.3 points per game).
Georgia Bulldogs
On January 7, 2015, he was named the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia (UGA or Georgia) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Athens, Georgia, United States. Chartered in 1785, it is the oldest public university in th ...
under head coach
Mark Richt, replacing
Mike Bobo who accepted the head coach position at
Colorado State University
Colorado State University (Colorado State or CSU) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Fort Collins, Colorado, United States. It is the flagship university of the Colorado State University Syst ...
. His starter at quarterback was Virginia transfer
Greyson Lambert. He lost starting running back
Nick Chubb to a season-ending knee injury in the sixth game against the
University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (or The University of Tennessee; UT; UT Knoxville; or colloquially UTK or Tennessee) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United St ...
.
The offense averaged 26.3 points per game (15 points less than in 2014), helping the team achieve a 10-3 record. Following Richt's firing at the end of the season, Schottenheimer announced on December 14 to his position players that he would not return, as he was not retained by new head coach
Kirby Smart.
Indianapolis Colts
On January 18, 2016, the
Indianapolis Colts
The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. Since the 2008 India ...
announced the hiring of Schottenheimer as their quarterbacks coach, replacing
Clyde Christensen who left to become the
offensive coordinator
An offensive coordinator (OC) is a Coach (sport), coach responsible for a gridiron football team's offense (American football), offense. Generally, the offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator represent the second ...
for the
Miami Dolphins. He contributed to
Andrew Luck having arguably the best-overall performance of his career, establishing a single-season career-high in completion percentage (63.5) and being ranked among the top 10 in the league in passing yards (4,240, eighth), passing touchdowns (31, fifth) and quarterback rating (96.4, ninth).
In 2017, Luck was forced to miss the season while recovering from an offseason right shoulder surgery.
Scott Tolzien started the season-opener, before making way for
Jacoby Brissett, who took over as the starter in Week 2 after being acquired in a trade. Helping Brisset learn the playbook week by week, Schottenheimer contributed to a production of 3,098 passing yards, 13 passing touchdowns, seven interceptions, 63 carries for 260 yards and 4 rushing scores in 16 games (15 starts).
Seattle Seahawks
On January 15, 2018, the
Seattle Seahawks named Schottenheimer as their offensive coordinator. The Seahawks went on to have the league's top rushing offense for the
2018
Events January
* January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency.
* January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...
season and quarterback
Russell Wilson had a career high 110.9 passer rating.
In 2019, Wilson threw for over 4,000 yards for the third time in his career, passed for 32 touchdowns (3rd in NFL), set a career-low with five interceptions and was named the NFC starter for the
2020 Pro Bowl.
Chris Carson rushed for a career-high 1,230 yards, while the offense ranked in the top 10 in the NFL in rushing yards per game (137.5, fourth), total yards per game (374.4, eighth), points per game (25.3, ninth).
In 2020, the offense set a franchise record for most points scored (459 points). Despite a torrid start to the season which saw career highs for quarterback
Russell Wilson in touchdowns and completion percentage, Seattle's offense struggled considerably during the final weeks, with Schottenheimer taking the brunt of the scrutiny due to lack of creativity in the offense and adjustments to the scheme. On January 12, 2021, Schottenheimer was fired by the Seahawks following the Seahawks' Wild Card loss to the
Los Angeles Rams
The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...
due to "philosophical differences".
Three players made an
All-Pro team during his tenure, quarterback
Russell Wilson, offensive tackle
Duane Brown and wide receiver
DK Metcalf.
Jacksonville Jaguars
On February 1, 2021, Schottenheimer was hired by the
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC South, South division. The team ...
as their passing game coordinator under head coach
Urban Meyer
Urban Frank Meyer III (born July 10, 1964) is an American Sports commentator, sportscaster and former college football coach. He spent most of his coaching career at the collegiate level, having served as the head coach of the Bowling Green F ...
. He was in charge of calling the offensive plays for the final four games of the season, after Meyer was fired.
On February 8, 2022, upon the Jaguars hiring of
Doug Pederson as the new head coach, Schottenheimer was not retained on the coaching staff.
Dallas Cowboys
On March 24, 2022, Schottenheimer was hired by the
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...
as a consultant.
He worked mostly with
defensive coordinator
A defensive coordinator (DC) is a coach responsible for a gridiron football team's defense. Generally, the defensive coordinator, offensive coordinator and special teams coordinator represent the second level of a team's coaching structure, wit ...
Dan Quinn, providing analysis of opposing teams offenses.
On February 4, 2023, after
Kellen Moore left to join the
Los Angeles Chargers
The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC W ...
staff, Schottenheimer was promoted to offensive coordinator, with head coach
Mike McCarthy taking over the play-calling responsibility. The team scored 30 or more points in seven of their final 11 games, while finishing with the highest-ranking scoring offense in the league (29.9 points per game) and fifth in yards (371.6 yards per game).
In 2024, the offense regressed, averaging 327.5 yards, 20.6 points, and scoring 30 or more points in just three games. Part of the issue was the season-ending injury to starting quarterback
Dak Prescott.
On January 24, 2025, a couple of weeks after McCarthy and the Cowboys decided not to renew McCarthy's contract, Schottenheimer was promoted to head coach. Schottenheimer's decision came as a surprise, as he was not known to be in consideration over more qualified candidates, until he became a betting favorite to be the team's next head coach on January 20, and after it was confirmed that his first official interview took place on January 21. It was reported in the media that one of Schottenheimer's supporters was Prescott.
Head coaching record
Personal life
Schottenheimer is the son of
Marty Schottenheimer, who had been the head coach of the
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...
,
Washington Redskins
The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...
,
San Diego Chargers
The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...
, and
Kansas City Chiefs. Brian's uncle,
Kurt Schottenheimer, was also the defensive backs coach and defensive coordinator for the Chiefs. In addition to coaching, Schottenheimer is a frequent contributor to The 33rd Team, which describes itself as a "football Think Tank."
References
External links
Dallas Cowboys profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schottenheimer, Brian
1973 births
Living people
American football quarterbacks
Coaches of American football from Colorado
Dallas Cowboys coaches
Dallas Cowboys head coaches
Florida Gators football players
Georgia Bulldogs football coaches
Head coaches of American football
Indianapolis Colts coaches
Jacksonville Jaguars coaches
Kansas City Chiefs coaches
Kansas Jayhawks football players
NFL offensive coordinators
New York Jets coaches
Players of American football from Denver
San Diego Chargers coaches
Seattle Seahawks coaches
St. Louis Rams coaches
USC Trojans football coaches
Washington Redskins coaches