Cowboys Load Up With Final Moves To 'Schotty' Staff

FRISCO - How do we usually judge a newly-hired assistant coach?

There are one of two ways to go.

One, we base our thoughts on whether we've heard of him, and on what we can quickly scrounge up in terms of his resume and his team's stats at his previous stops.

Two, we withhold judgment because we are honest with ourselves about the fact that 99 percent of us have never heard of said new hire.

Case in point? The lame-duck coaching staff season for the 2024 Dallas Cowboys has resulted in many thinking coaches of a 7-10 season simply shouldn't be retained ...

Because they are "bad coaches.''

Same thing with coaches who've just been fired elsewhere. They must be "bad,'' otherwise they wouldn't have been fired ... right?

That's ridiculous, of course; coaches themselves live by the mantra, "We're hired to get fired.''

So now, as attention turns to the 2025 season under new head coach Brian Schottenheimer - who just to prove our point was a "hot'' candidate a decade ago but is now seen as an "uninspired'' one - the new staff is coming together. To wit ...

Matt Eberflus will lead the defense. His key staffers are defensive passing game coordinator Andre Curtis, DBs coach David Overstreet, linebackers coach Dave Borgonzi, defensive line coach Aaron Whitecotton.

Eberflus was by all measures a success as an assistant (including during his time in Dallas) but as a head coach in Chicago, where he was recently fired, posted a dismal 14-32 record.

Good coach? Or bad coach?

Offensively, Schotty is putting together a staff with some names that are earning positive reviews. The group: Klayton Adams (offensive coordinator), Lunda Wells (tight ends coach), Conor Riley (offensive line coach), Derrick Foster (running backs coach), Steve Shimko (QB coach) and Junior Adams (receivers coach), who will all be tasked with getting the most out of Dak Prescott and company in 2025.

Oh, and now veteran coordinator Ken Dorsett is coming aboard as a "passing game specialist.''

Good group? Had you ever heard of the now-touted Adams before last week? Does the fact that Dorsey has been fired twice in the last two years mean he's part of a "bad group''?

With a key emphasis on running the football, the Cowboys have gone after proven coaches. Adams and Riley both have resumes that suggest they can be quality additions, particularly in the run game. Plus, Adams (who was the co-offensive coordinator at Oregon) focuses on the details of route running, which the Cowboys often blasted for last season.

And Dorsey has experience as an offensive coordinator from recent stints in Buffalo and Cleveland.

Pitch in Nick Sorensen, formerly the 49ers' defensive coordinator - yes, he just got fired - as the new special-teams boss, with Carlos Polk as his top aide. ... and we think the staff has pretty much been finalized.

And if that does mark the completion of the assemblage of Schottenheimer's new staff?

It is dotted with guys with good resumes but also with guys who have been connected over the years to 1) Schottenheimer, 2) Eberflus, 3) agents doing some of the steering and 4) the Cowboys of the past.

We can optimistically suggest that Dallas appears to be in solid shape with Schottenheimer's staff. ... while again pointing out that the reasoning behind fans and media saying good things or bad about a coach is based on whether or not we've ever heard of him.