The Dallas Cowboys are 2-4 and third in the NFC East. They come off back-to-back losses to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Green Bay Packers, in which their offense managed 29 points combined, and they have three days to sort things out before facing the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night.

But on Friday, the spotlight moved to head coach Brian Schottenheimer himself, after he went on Dallas radio station “105.3 The Fan” and called himself “an elite play-caller in this league.” Cowboys analyst RJ Ochoa and The Athletic’s Dave Helman, along with a handful of fans, didn’t let that line pass quietly.

Brian Schottenheimer Admits a Two-Week Slump and Draws a Pointed Reply

Schottenheimer, now in his second season as Dallas’ head coach, didn’t dodge the slump during the Friday morning appearance: “I have incredible confidence in our offense. Have not played well the last two weeks. We understand a lot of the reasons why, have addressed a lot of the reasons why.”

Ochoa didn’t hold back: “When you are not playing well nobody cares. And shouting things about yourself looks like you need people to believe what you are saying. Just stop talking.”

Helman took a lighter approach, joking that his “guess is someone read a book about manifesting,” suggesting Schottenheimer may have been trying to speak better results into existence.

Fans Take Aim at Schottenheimer’s Choice of Words

Among fans, much of the attention landed on the label Schottenheimer gave himself. One fan asked, “He really called himself Elite?”

Another fan wrote that “anytime your head coach calls himself an ‘Elite Play-Caller’ proves how insecure he is and shows he’s not one.”

One fan added, “One of the most insecure quotes I’ve ever seen. The offense might get going, the Cowboys might even start to win games, but the elephant in the room will make its presence known eventually.”

Another fan put it this way: “I think Schotty is losing his confidence so now he has to prop himself self up. That’s bad for a team struggling.”

“Wait, did he seriously just call himself an elite play caller ???? He can’t stop giving himself flowers,” said another frustrated Cowboys fan.

Those reactions follow two losses. Dallas led Tampa Bay 10-7 at halftime at AT&T Stadium on Oct. 8.

Then the Buccaneers scored 17 straight points in the third quarter and went on to win 24-16. The Cowboys held the ball for just 20:39 that night, turned it over three times and ran only 13 times for 50 yards.

Ten days later at Lambeau Field, Dallas opened with a six-play, 19-yard drive that ended in a punt, trailed 17-0 at halftime, and lost 23-13.

The Cowboys converted five of 13 third downs, scored on two of four red-zone trips, and had two drives end on downs. They ran 15 times for 48 yards, while quarterback Dak Prescott went 34 of 54 for 258 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.

Last season, with Schottenheimer calling plays, Dallas finished second in the NFL in yards and seventh in points. The offense has slipped to 13th in yards per game this season, though the Cowboys still grade well on PFN’s Offense Impact Metric, ranking fourth with an 83.7 grade.

Pro Football Network’s NFL QB Impact Grade has Prescott at 78.5 this season, 12th of 34 graded quarterbacks, and he graded 82 for the full 2025 season, 6th of 38.

Two other fans turned the focus back to the field. One fan offered simple advice: “Just go win games and let that tell us how good you are.”

Another fan wrote, “I get having confidence in yourself … but giving yourself the TITLE of ELITE play caller is crazy when your offense can’t even adjust.”

The team, for its part, is standing by its coach. Owner and general manager Jerry Jones went on “105.3 The Fan” later on Friday morning and backed Schottenheimer and the offense: “We’re in good shape … We’re really structured to address what our problems have been over the last two weeks.”

Schottenheimer’s next chance to call plays comes Monday night at Lincoln Financial Field. The Eagles’ defense ranks 27th in the NFL in yards allowed per game, at 363.8.