This has been an interesting week for the Dallas Cowboys to say the least.
Technically it has been longer than that. Dallas lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last Thursday night and as they were heavy favorites in that game (both literally and figuratively) the fallout from getting waxed has made things rather tense.
Fallout has been particularly intense on the defensive side of the ball. Rookie defensive coordinator Christian Parker has struggled, and head coach Brian Schottenheimer pledged to use
the mini bye following the Thursday game to figure out how to address those issues as well as others across the team at large.
Unfortunately, in true Cowboys fashion, some of the work on defense has played out in the public which mas made things rather confusing. In order:
- Monday: The Cowboys hired Mike Pettine to serve as an advisor to the defensive staff
- Tuesday: Jerry Jones said on 105.3 The Fan that Christian Parker would be moving from the sideline to the booth
- Wednesday: Brian Schottenheimer said that nothing had been decided on Parker’s in-game location
- Thursday: Parker himself said that he would “most likely” be on the sideline
- Friday: Schottenheimer confirmed that Parker would remain on the sideline and that Pettine would be in the booth
You can hear Schottenheimer offering the last bit in the clip below. You can also here at the beginning that he is asked who Pettine reports to and he says directly to him, not to Christian Parker.
On one hand, a very obvious one, it makes full and total sense for Pettine to report to Schottenheimer given that Schottenheimer is the team’s head coach. Nothing is unfair or illogical about that.
On the other hand though, it is obvious that the narrative surrounding Christian Parker has been rather not great so far this season and at this particular moment. Putting that information out into the ether through a public vehicle is at the very least stirring the pot, even if unintentionally. Maybe Schottenheimer wants that. Perhaps he doesn’t realize that that’s part of what’s happening.
Whatever the case, so ends one of the weirder sagas to follow the Cowboys in recent memory. At least for now.
