The Dallas Cowboys have had a lot of mantras over the past couple of seasons, with "Carpe Omnia" and "Rooted" being used under Mike McCarthy, but now this is Brian Schottenheimer's ship, and we, with the help of Hall of Famer Michael Irvin, may have just unearthed another one.
Competition under pressure.
As OTAs have gotten underway, Schottenheimer invited several legends to The Star to participate in meetings and watch practice, including Irvin among others.
And Irvin, on his YouTube channel, detailed what the day was like, and he came away with a three-word phrase I heard all throughout his 27-minute video.
Competition under pressure.
From the basketball hoop in the meeting room as players competed against each other, to having a good practice, only for Schottenheimer to call the group in and give them an old-fashioned talking to, the "Playmaker" was impressed. Irvin stated that players were looking around, trying to determine who had let the team down, yet nobody spoke up. Why?
Because that's how you built what Irvin calls the right culture.
"That's how you build champions because now nobody wants to be the one to let everybody down," Irvin said. "If everybody [is] looking around saying who did that, who took it easy, then you get some answers around here and you get some more of them championships. Because that's how you create, that's how you live in the right what they call culture."
Miami Hurricanes former player and NFL Hall of Fame member Michael Irvin looks on during the first half of a game between the Miami Hurricanes and the Syracuse Orange at the JMA Wireless Dome.
Rich Barnes-Imagn Images
Mind you, this is an OTA practice, and that is the standard being set.
But Irvin wasn't done with his story.
He detailed that when CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens both caught 70+ yard touchdowns, they were tackled way before, yet both sprinted to the end zone anyway.
“Competition under pressure, I'm telling you, I like what I saw,” Irvin added. “I like how he's handling it."
Now, Irvin has always been Dallas' biggest fan and supporter, but after being in the meeting rooms and on the practice field, seeing Schottenheimer do his thing, and watching the players get put through their paces, he was left impressed.
"I'm telling y'all, I walked out of there real excited about this season, and I'm going to tell you, a lot of people going to be sleeping [on Dallas] then we going to creep."
It was an insightful talk Irvin gave, which peeked behind the curtain of Schottenheimer's vision for his team in 2025, and he came away impressed with the direction the franchise is heading.
And he came away with a new mantra for Dallas in 2025.
Competition under pressure.