The Cowboys didn’t just lose Thursday night. They got exposed.
Dallas entered Week 5 with a chance to build on the hard-fought win from the week before, but the defense came apart in a 24-16 loss to the winless Buccaneers at AT&T Stadium. The numbers tell the story in ugly detail: Tampa Bay piled up 419 total yards, ran for 241, and bullied Dallas at the point of attack. Bucky Irving was the engine, ripping off 165 rushing yards and delivering a long second-half score that helped set the tone.
For a Cowboys defense that had only five sacks through five games, it was another night without much push up front. The secondary gave up explosive plays, the run defense cracked at key moments, and Dallas never really controlled the line of scrimmage. The result dropped the Cowboys to 2-3 and sharpened the questions around a unit that keeps looking like the weak link.
Jerry Jones didn’t sugarcoat it afterward. “Extraordinarily, extraordinarily disappointed,” Jones said after the game, according to the team’s official site. “You really do need to get it done when it’s there to take.”
Former Cowboy Chris Canty was even harsher on ESPN, calling it a historically bad loss.
That backdrop is what makes the Maxx Crosby talk so loud. Heavy’s Max Dible floated a trade framework that would send Dallas’ remaining 2027 first-round pick and its 2028 first-rounder to Las Vegas in exchange for the edge rusher. On paper, it’s the kind of swing that could change the feel of this defense overnight.
Crosby remains one of the league’s most disruptive edge rushers, and he’s already got a pair of sacks and a forced fumble this season while the Raiders sit at 3-1. Dallas, meanwhile, has just two takeaways on the year and is minus-3 in turnover differential, tied for last in the NFL.
As Dible wrote, “The Cowboys have a total of five sacks through five games this season. They are minus-3 in turnover differential and have created just two takeaways on the year, which is tied for last.
They just lost to an undrafted rookie QB in his second start at home in primetime. The Cowboys have a great offense, and they have spent dearly to build it.
They have a garbage defense but keep spending dearly to try and improve it,” he wrote.
There’s also the Dallas connection. Crosby grew up in the Dallas area after moving to Colleyville as a teenager, and the Cowboys had already lost the race for him against the Ravens earlier this year. Trade chatter around Crosby has lingered since that near-deal, even though Crosby has said he wants to stay in Las Vegas.
Still, the idea keeps resurfacing for a reason. A rebuilding Raiders team once shopped him for two first-round picks, and a package like this would be the kind of aggressive move that immediately changes Dallas’ pass rush while giving the offense a little more room to breathe as the schedule gets tougher.
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Raiders Suddenly Have A Marvin Harrison Jr. Decision That Changes Everything
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For Las Vegas, the possibility is hard to ignore because this is the sort of move that can alter the outlook for the rest of the season and beyond. The destination is still unsettled, and there has even been speculation about a mystery team, but the Cardinals are clearly looking for meaningful value back in any deal. For now, the Raiders are left waiting to see whether this becomes a real opportunity or just another deadline name that never quite lands. [Read more 🡒]