Nick Sorensen, a former Seattle Seahawks assistant coach, is reuniting with Brian Schottenheimer with the Dallas Cowboys.
For eight seasons, former Seattle Seahawks assistant coach Nick Sorensen ascended the coaching tree under Pete Carroll. Now, he’s reuniting with Dallas Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer as the team’s special teams coordinator.
Sorensen, 46, was with the Seahawks from 2013-20 and was the team’s assistant special teams coach during each of their Super Bowl appearances in the 2013 and 2014 seasons.
By 2020, Sorensen was Seattle’s secondary coach and nickel specialist, working on the opposite side of the ball from Schottenheimer, the Seahawks’ offensive coordinator at the time.
Sorensen became the Jacksonville Jaguars’ special teams coordinator in 2021 before being hired by the San Francisco 49ers — Seattle’s bitter division rival — in 2022 as a defensive assistant.
San Francisco fired defensive coordinator Steve Wilks after the 2023 season, and Sorensen was promoted to the position in 2024. He lasted just one season in that job, however, as the 49ers’ defense allowed the fourth-most points per game (25.6) and ranked 25th in takeaways (17), among other disappointing metrics for the unit.
Sorensen is as well-versed in coaching special teams as he is defense, and he will now return to coordinating a special teams unit for the first time since 2021.
Schottenheimer and Sorensen were on Carroll’s Seahawks staff concurrently for three seasons, but the latter coached defense during that time. Schottenheimer trusts Sorensen’s special teams acumen, regardless.
Sorensen was the second coordinator hired by Schottenheimer and the Cowboys on Tuesday. Former Chicago Bears head coach Matt Eberflus was hired as Dallas’ defensive coordinator earlier in the day.
Carroll’s Seattle coaching tree isn’t often discussed, even though former defensive coordinator Dan Quinn led the Washington Commanders to an NFC Championship appearance this season. Dave Canales, an assistant under Carroll from 2010-22, is also the current Carolina Panthers head coach.
Sorensen hasn’t reached head coaching heights, but he’s now on to his third coordinator job after putting his roots down in Seattle over a decade ago.
