Dak Prescott didn’t just take heat after the Cowboys’ 24-16 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday - he ended up at the center of a fresh round of criticism over how he handled it.
The flashpoint came after the game, when a man yelled “embarrassing” at Prescott. The man was first believed to be a Cowboys stadium worker, but was later identified as a contractor employed by a third party.
Prescott said the issue wasn’t that someone voiced frustration. It was the way the man reacted once the quarterback looked his way.
"When he said it, I just happened to look at him, and at that point, he looked away," Prescott said. "And when I turned my head back, he said something else.
That’s the part that, just as a man or as just a person, feel free to speak your mind, just speak it. Don’t cower away from the reaction that you’re going to get.”
Jason Whitlock took aim at Prescott on his "Fearless with Jason Whitlock" podcast, saying the quarterback should have been more bothered by the loss itself than the comment. Whitlock argued that losing at home to a team that had yet to win a game should have been the real source of frustration for everyone in Dallas.
"Dak, I think, snitched on the guy and told security... And then this guy turns around and looks like he's trying to hunt down who the person was that said 'embarrassing,'" Whitlock said.
"I wish he had walked back and (owner) Jerry Jones had been standing there, and that was the person who yelled 'embarrassing.'”
Prescott’s night against Tampa Bay was uneven. He finished 24 of 42 for 316 yards, with one touchdown and two interceptions in a game that got away from Dallas.
It was also a step back from the previous week, when he threw for 335 yards and a touchdown against the Houston Texans. Earlier in the season, Prescott had looked sharper in Week 2, piling up 279 passing yards and four touchdown passes against the Washington Commanders.
The Cowboys are now 2-3 and have an extended break before their Week 6 road game against the Green Bay Packers. Both sides of the ball will need to tighten up if Dallas is going to get back on track.
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