New Dallas Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer isn’t just drawing from football’s playbook. He’s channeling basketball legends Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant to transform how his team approaches practice, bringing a championship mentality to every training session.
How Is Brian Schottenheimer Channeling Jordan’s Philosophy of Practice?
Schottenheimer was raised in the sport, with his father, the late Marty Schottenheimer, being a head coach for 21 years in the NFL. His father was a huge advocate for getting practice done properly. However, another legendary coach, basketball’s Phil Jackson, and his work with Jordan during the Chicago Bulls’ 1990s run inspired the Cowboys’ head coach.
“I remember Michael Jordan talking about practice all the time – if you practice the right way … and then Kobe [Bryant] adopted it,” Schottenheimer told Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer. “You practice the right way and games are easy. So we can’t simulate a real game out here like basketball can, because we can’t tackle and things like that, but you can push it, and you can get to the edge.”
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Schottenheimer is convinced his message is resonating in the locker room. He confidently stated that “We are an excellent, excellent practice team.”
The approach goes beyond motivational speeches. Breer also reported that one of Schottenheimer’s innovative methods is the way they conduct practice. The Cowboys are one of the teams that do the most 11-on-11 drills. Teams usually do position-specific exercises or work on 7-on-7 drills or 9-on-7 drills during training camp.
Schottenheimer believes it will separate his team from the rest of the competition.
“It was one of the first things we ever talked about, in one of the first team meetings. And from OTAs, through minicamp to now, the energy and the effort that our guys are practicing with and running?” He said. “I think we’re one of the few teams that still practices in the offseason program, like, does team (11-on-11). I talk to five or six of my peers, and they’re like, We don’t f—ing practice, we don’t do team anymore, we do seven-on-seven.”
What’s the Latest on Micah Parsons’ Status?
However, it has not been a peaceful training camp for the first-year head coach. Schottenheimer has had to handle his star pass rusher, Micah Parsons, publicly requesting a trade from the Cowboys amid stalled contract extension negotiations. Parsons is in camp, but has not been practicing due to a back injury.
Schottenheimer gave an update at Friday’s press conference, calling the injury “day-to-day.” The coach will be hoping that Parsons’ contract standoff is resolved by the time the Cowboys take the field against the defending champions, Philadelphia Eagles, to kick off their 2026 campaign on September 4.
