If their troubles in defense and a 7-9-1 record weren’t enough, head coach Brian Schottenheimer now has a penalty problem to solve. The Cowboys had the most penalties last season (133), and their special teams unit had contributed 32. That’s why, when they went into training camp, Schottenheimer made it a point to warn players. Be careful about penalties. 

Yet, after the first preseason game, it doesn’t look like the situation has gotten any better. And when you look at the changes in the special teams, the reason for the troubles may become a little clearer. 

As the Cowboys walked away from a win against Seattle, head coach Brian Schottenheimer wasn’t in a celebratory mood. Speaking to reporters about the team’s special teams performance, Schottenheimer made it clear the unit fell well short of his expectations.

“Yeah, not good enough. Addressed that today with the guys. It’s not the standard. We know that, but it’s also preseason Game 1,” Schottenheimer said, according to The Athletics’ Jon Machota.

The frustration was easy to understand. Dallas committed 13 penalties for 103 yards, and several of those mistakes came on special teams. The Cowboys also struggled to contain Seattle’s return game, leaving Schottenheimer concerned about the lack of discipline and communication.

And even though it was just a preseason game, the special teams’ struggles aren’t new. It started before the 2025 season kicked off, when coordinator John ‘Bones’ Fassel left in search of a new challenge. Bones was key in bringing the likes of KaVontae Turpin and K Brandon Aubrey to the team. More importantly, Fassel was the most successful (58.3% win percentage) special teams coordinator since the position was introduced within the team back in 2009. 

In his place came Nick Sorensen, who came with some experience, leading the special teams unit in Jacksonville for a year and his entire career playing with the special teams unit. However, his performance in the season came under scrutiny, especially after their Week 14 loss against the Detroit Lions, when Dallas gave away the ball at an average field position of their own 42-yard line.

And just as head coach Schottenheimer did back then, his response this time centered around one problem: coverage. 

“We did a terrible job of communicating non-verbally on the coverage teams. ‘Hey, I’m the ball player. I’m the outside player. I’m the capper.’ Didn’t do a good enough job of that, so we had a long special teams meeting today. It’s going to be a big part of our emphasis because it wasn’t good enough.”

Those problems showed up throughout the night. Seattle’s Rashad Rochelle broke off a 53-yard punt return in the third quarter, and an illegal-formation penalty on Dallas added five more yards to the play. That put the Seahawks at the Cowboys’ 27-yard line, creating another difficult situation for the defense. The fourth quarter brought another example.

Dallas wide receiver Traeshon Holden had a 19-yard punt return wiped out by a too-many-men-on-the-field penalty. On the following punt, Holden tried to field the bouncing ball near Dallas’ 2-yard line and muffed it, giving Seattle the ball deep in Cowboys territory.

And the problems don’t end there. Special teams ace C.J. Goodwin retired in the off-season. The team also has a new class of rookies, with the likes of Caleb Downs and Justin Barron looking for a potential spot on the special teams unit. That’s why coach Schottenheimer believes there’s a simple way of dealing with it. 

“Our mantra is get back to basics. Got to pay more attention to detail. Very, very disappointed in how we lost to contain. Very disappointed in how we gave up kickside leverage,” he said. “And the ball’s supposed to be kept on your right shoulder? Keep it on your right shoulder. The ball’s supposed to be on your left shoulder? Keep it on your left shoulder.”

For Schottenheimer, the message after the 17-7 win was clear: the Cowboys have plenty to clean up before the preseason moves on. And that’s what the preseason games are for. 

The team now shifts its attention to Game 2, with a long special teams meeting already behind them and Schottenheimer’s expectations made unmistakably clear.