NFC Notes: Brian Schottenheimer, Nick Sirianni, Cowboys, Eagles, Giants

Cowboys

Cowboys’ new HC Brian Schottenheimer is the son of Marty Schottenheimer, who spent 21 years of his career as a head coach with the Browns, Chiefs, Commanders, and Chargers but never won a Super Bowl. Jones reflected on the moments after he named Schottenheimer their head coach. 

“I was standing with Schotty when he called (her),” Jones said, via Jon Machota of The Athletic. “One of the things he said (was), ‘Mama, I’m going to get what Daddy got a chance, but didn’t get. And I’m going to get a Super Bowl if it kills me.’ His mother of course was emotional. ‘This one will be for Daddy. The first one will be for him.’”

Cowboys executive Stephen Jones said there were several factors in their decision to promote Schottenheimer from offensive coordinator to head coach, including how he motivates players. 

“It’s not just the X’s and O’s,” Jones said. “We obviously went extensively through the X’s and O’s, but also, you get into the schedules, you get into how you get your players motivated, how you take care of your players. All those things are part of being a head coach. And that’s a lot.”

Jerry Jones feels Schottenheimer has a strong grasp on the past, present, and future of offensive philosophies. 

“Schotty has a good feel for not only the offensive philosophies where they are today, but where they’re going to go, and certainly where it has been,” Jones said. “That’s rare to come in here with this kind of energy, this kind of, ‘I’m going to show them.’ That’s rare to combine those two things. Yeah, there’ll be change, but we’ll (keep) in place some of the things that we have here now.”

Eagles

The Eagles are off to their second Super Bowl under HC Nick Sirianni. One anonymous NFL staffer told Albert Breer of SI that Sirianni is able to connect with players and has established a strong culture in Philadelphia. 

“He’s a connector of people,” the staffer said. “Culture is all about playing together. The entire group is bought in, and winning and maximizing the moment we are in.”

Another anonymous source said Sirianni pays extra close attention to the finer details. 

“He preaches detail, detail, detail to players to such an extent that it really gets through to them to live,” the source said. 

One Eagles coach said Sirianni is an “incredible leader” and reiterated how he connects with players on an individual level. 

“Nick is just an incredible leader,” the coach said. “It’s the way he connects everyone on an individual level. Love his team meetings, brings the energy and focus for our team.”

• ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler says Eagles OC Kellen Moore is the leading candidate to be the next head coach of the Saints and Philadelphia is bracing to lose him after the Super Bowl. 
• Eagles DT Jalen Carter was fined $17,445 for striking Commanders C Tyler Biadasz, while WR A.J. Brown was fined $11, 255 for a facemask.

Giants

The Giants are in the market for a quarterback after moving on from QB Daniel Jones in the middle of the 2024 season. New York GM Joe Schoen believes they have a good foundation for a young quarterback on the offensive side of the ball because of continuity up front along with weapons like WR Malik Nabers.

“The way we built our roster, four of our five starting offensive linemen coming back,” Schoen said, via SiriusXM NFL Radio. “In Malik Nabers, you have a No. 1 receiver on the roster. Young tight end that was really promising this year in Theo Johnson. [Running back] Tyrone Tracy. The cupboard’s not bare offensively.”