Last offseason, Schottenheimer was still figuring things out at draft time, but now, a year on, he's ready to be more involved.
Dallas Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer's first year as an NFL head coach was a whirlwind.
The rookie head coach was dealing with a lot of change, and some things popped up that he wasn't ready for.
As it pertains to the draft, last offseason, Schotty was still busy trying to figure out how everything worked, which meant he wasn't as involved as he would have liked.
But now? After a year to get used to the nature of his position, Schottenheimer is ready to be more involved in the draft process than he was last season.
Schottenheimer noted that last offseason, most of what he saw was highlight film, but now he knows what really goes into it, which makes it easier for him to help.
"Obviously, these guys have done a great job, of course, talking about from Jerry down, Stephen, but Will McClay, Mitch LaPoint, Ross [Wuensche], Chris Vaughn, they've done a great job setting the board,” Schottenheimer said.
“Now I'm going through all the positions. You want to be prepared to do what we need to do on defense, but we're not going to pass on a great offensive player if they're there at one of those spots.
"I'm so much more familiar. Last year was more I saw the highlight films, now I've seen game film. I've seen these guys compete, and it makes it a little easier to help make that selection."
With the Cowboys holding two first-round picks, the consensus is that two defensive players will be selected due to the urgent need for upgrades.
But as Schottenheimer detailed, if the right offensive player is on the board, the Cowboys aren't above making a strength even stronger.
For most, a corner, like LSU's Mansoor Delane and linebacker CJ Allen, are options at No. 12 and No. 20.
Both would be starters for Christian Parker's defense.
Of course, as our own Mike Fisher has stated, there is a real chance that the Cowboys add a veteran linebacker prior to the draft.
So there is still plenty to play out over the coming weeks ahead of the draft.
But one thing is for certain: Schottenheimer is going to be far more involved than he was last offseason.