Dallas Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer battled and overcame thyroid cancer when he was 28 in 2002, he revealed Wednesday.
Schottenheimer, now 51, revealed his past diagnosis one day after Cowboys owner Jerry Jones revealed he overcame stage 4 melanoma, which he was diagnosed with in 2010. About 53,000 Americans each year are diagnosed with thyroid cancer, which is highly curable, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
“I’m glad that Jerry shared it, just because I think it gives people hope. It gives people the strength to say ‘Hey, you can beat this, you can do that,’” Schottenheimer said, according to the Cowboys’ website. “When you have that type of diagnosis, to have that hope and that ability to think, ‘Hey, I can fight through this and maybe I can catch a break and get lucky,’ I think that’s great.”
Schottenheimer said he was diagnosed with thyroid cancer during his first year as quarterbacks coach for the then-San Diego Chargers under his father, head coach Marty Schottenheimer. Brian said he learned of his diagnosis during team training camp and immediately pulled Marty out of a defensive meeting to tell him he had cancer.
“I broke down, of course. I lost it,” Brian said. “He said ‘Hey, we’ll figure this out and we’ll get you the best help we can get.’ And he picked up the phone and called (former Washington Commanders owner) Dan Snyder, a guy that two years before had fired him…”
Marty served as Washington’s head coach in 2001, with Brian as quarterbacks coach, before he was fired by Snyder after one season in January 2002.
“He told me when Dan picked up the phone and my dad said to him, ‘Dan, I’ve got a problem. Brian has cancer.’ Dan said, ‘Marty, give me five minutes. I’ll call you back,’” Brian said. “And I think it was within 24 to 36 hours I was on the operating table in Rochester, Minnesota.”
Brian underwent surgery during which doctors removed his thyroid and 17 lymph nodes. He said he was “terrified” of losing his ability to speak “because of my love for coaching.”
“And I was one of the lucky ones,” he added.
Schottenheimer is entering his first season as Cowboys head coach after spending the past three as Dallas’ offensive coordinator and coaching analyst. He also previously has served as an offensive coordinator or assistant coach with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Seattle Seahawks, Indianapolis Colts, then-St. Louis Rams, New York Jets, Chargers, Washington, and Kansas City Chiefs.
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