Brian Schottenheimer might get who he wanted for his Dallas Cowboys coaching staff after failing to secure him earlier in the year
The Dallas Cowboys offered a former player a job on the coaching staff earlier in the year, which he understandably didn’t take. But now, the doors are open for a reunion to happen.
The Dallas Cowboys coaching staff is ready to go for the 2026 NFL season. But it’s looking like one more addition could come just in time for training camp. It remains to be seen if a hire happens or not, but a candidate Brian Schottenheimer offered a job to just became available following the latest news.
Let’s dive in.
Former Cowboys QB Will Grier retires
It turns out Will Grier is retiring from the NFL. He was set to take on training camp as a member of the Carolina Panthers. It was a solid six-year career in the pros, playing for the Panthers, Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles, New England Patriots, and Cincinnati Bengals.
The reason why this matters—besides the fact that he is a former Cowboy—is that Grier was offered a job on Schottenheimer’s staff before signing with the Panthers this offseason.
Not only that but Grier was “leaning toward taking it” at the time, according to The Athletic’s Joe Person. Naturally, Grier opted to pursue another chance as a player instead. However, a depth chart featuring Bryce Young, Kenny Pickett, and Haynes King likely meant Grier’s stay in Carolina would end in August.
Now that Grier has hung up his cleats, it’s only fair to ask if he’ll take the job he was already thinking about this very year.
Why Grier makes sense for the Cowboys staff
Though Grier didn’t translate to a starting NFL quarterback, it wasn’t the smarts that held him back. These are clearly well looked-at around the league, leading to multiple backup gigs over six years.
“(Grier) knows the intricacies of that system,” Panthers QB Kenny Pickett said about Grier via The Athletic. “So to have a guy like that, where you’re at practice and you’re standing and you’re not in and you’re watching, having really helpful conversations about each play that’s going on.”
Additionally, Schottenheimer is no stranger to giving new opportunities to largely unproven coaches. Both Klayton Adams (offensive coordinator) and Christian Parker (defensive coordinator) were hired by the Cowboys despite no previous NFL coordinator experience.
Grier would be another example of a relatively inexperienced coach taking on a bigger role, even if at a smaller scale.
We don’t know what the Cowboys offered Grier earlier in the season nor if Schottenheimer is still interested in him. However, the door is wide open for Grier to join his former team in Dallas. He still has strong relationships with Cowboys players, including QB Dak Prescott and TE Jake Ferguson.
The Cowboys already have a quarterbacks coach (Steve Shimko) and a pass game specialist (Ken Dorsey). If Grier joins the staff, it would probably be in an assistant role or maybe a consultant.