The Dallas Cowboys have themselves a penalty issue to deal with. A statement such as this would probably apply to any season in the last decade, but it’s of particular value here in 2026. With all the issues the Cowboys are trying to overcome and the Dak Prescott window of opportunity closing by the day, Dallas can’t afford a gratuitous number of self-inflicted wounds making things tougher.
The Cowboys are currently fourth worst in the NFL in penalties against. They stand alone as the worst in the league in penalty yards against.Penalties frequently stall drives on offense and extend drives on defense, making it quite possibly the most important correctable error on the Cowboys today.
Most will agree, penalties are a coaching and accountability
issue. While some penalties are just a byproduct of being beat by better players, many penalties are because of poor technique and/or poor situational awareness.
A week after a disastrous display of discipline in which Dallas committed 14 penalties for 153 yards including one where an inactive player ran onto the field to celebrate with teammates, coach Brian Schottenheimer’s leadership has been called into question.
Offensive Holding Penalties pic.twitter.com/rh4u60lwPk
— SFdata9ers🏈📊 (@sfdata9ers) November 13, 2026
Schottenheimer, undoubtedly a player’s coach, is known for his approachable style, friendly demeaner, and supportive communication. He’s a far cry from some of the successful disciplinarians the Cowboys have employed in the past like Tom Landry, Jimmy Johnson and Bill Parcells, and better resembles today’s peer-like coaches preferred by today’s generation of players.
For the record, players of yesterday surely would have preferred warm and fuzzy coaches as well but since those coaches rarely advanced to pro, or even college levels, players were forced to deal with what they got. Speaking of yesterday’s players, it’s difficult to imagine some of the misbehavior, mistakes, and indifference being tolerated on those teams of old, which is exactly the point today.
Most Undisciplined Teams
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32. SEA
31. GB
30.LAR
29. PIT pic.twitter.com/iAMMYRYPut
Schottenheimer is playing for his job this season. He may not be on the hot seat like some suggest, but he’s auditioning for the right to come back next year and the year after that. If the players stink, that’s one thing, but if they look lost on the field, undisciplined in their assignments and sloppy in their play, it falls on Schottenheimer and his culture of accountability.
Even a perfectly executed game in Week 10 is going to be tough to win but a game where the Cowboys repeatedly shoot themselves in the foot with penalties, is a recipe for disaster.
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Schottenheimer’s penalty issues in spotlight in Cowboys Week 10 game
