SPORTS-FBN-COWBOYS-SCHOTTENHEIMER-DA (copy)

DALLAS — Mike McCarthy brought Brian Schottenheimer into the Cowboys organization.

Now he’s stayed behind to take his place.

Schottenheimer, the team’s offensive coordinator the last two seasons, has agreed to a contract to become the Cowboys head coach, the team announced Friday night. The deal is for four years, a person with knowledge of the contract told The Dallas Morning News.

In what can only be called an unexpected turn, the long-time coordinator is now a first-time head coach, becoming the 10th man to hold that title in the franchise’s rich history.

A familiar face could be poised to join Schottenheimer’s staff. There’s a chance Jason Witten, the perennial Pro Bowl tight end who spent 16 of his 17 NFL seasons with the Cowboys, will join Schottenheimer as the team attempts to rebound from a 7-10 season undercut by injuries, two people with knowledge of the staff structure told The News.

Schottenheimer, whose contract expired along with McCarthy’s last week, became the fourth person to interview for the opening Tuesday afternoon. He had another session with owner Jerry Jones on Wednesday, making him the only candidate to interview over two days.

Philadelphia offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, who formerly filled that job for the Cowboys, was the first to interview in the wake of McCarthy’s departure. Former New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh and Seattle assistant head coach Leslie Frazier were next.

Saying that football is in Schottenheimer’s blood is not hyperbole. He’s the son of the revered Marty Schottenheimer, who spent 21 years as a head coach in the NFL, most notably with Cleveland and Kansas City.

The younger Schottenheimer has spent 25 of his 28 years of coaching in the NFL. He’s been a coordinator for 14 seasons, the last two under McCarthy in Dallas.

McCarthy cut his NFL teeth under the elder Schottenheimer with the Chiefs back in the mid-1990s. When the younger Schottenheimer joined the staff in 1998, McCarthy was asked by the father to be something of a coaching mentor and show his son the ropes.

In addition to his father and McCarthy, Schottenheimer has worked under Pete Carroll, Jeff Fisher, Rex Ryan, Paul Hackett and Dick Vermeil. In his first year as a coordinator with the Cowboys, the offense led the league in scoring with an average of 29.9 points and was fifth in yards. The Cowboys had five games of 40 or more points that season and the 509 points scored was the second most in franchise history.

Schottenheimer has had coordinator stints with the New York Jets (2006-11), a period in which the Jets advanced to the AFC championship game in back-to-back years. He went from there to the St. Louis Rams (2012-14) and then Seattle (2018-20), where quarterback Russell Wilson threw 40 touchdown passes in Schottenheimer’s final season with the Seahawks.

Schottenheimer worked on five other staffs in other capacities and came to the Cowboys after a season as Jacksonville’s passing game coordinator.

As a player, Schottenheimer earned three letters as a quarterback at the University of Florida, where he played under Steve Spurrier and backed up Heisman Trophy winner Danny Wuerffel during the Gators’ national championship season in 1996.

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