The Dallas Cowboys took a hit from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday Night Football, and the jokes started flying almost immediately.
One of the loudest came from Buccaneers rookie linebacker Josiah Trotter, who turned the upset into a personal victory lap on social media. He posted photos and a clip of himself bringing down running back Javonte Williams, tagged the post as Cowgirl Stadium, and added the line: "How bout dem Cowboys."
Trotter backed up the trash talk with production. The second-round pick out of Missouri finished Tampa Bay’s 24-16 win with seven tackles and one tackle for loss. It was the Buccaneers’ first win of the season, and they pulled it off without star quarterback Baker Mayfield.
In Mayfield’s place, undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels got the start and played like he belonged, helping Tampa Bay get through a Dallas defense that looked vulnerable all night. On the other side, the Buccaneers’ defense bottled up the Cowboys’ offense and held Dallas to its lowest point total of the season.
For Cowboys fans, Trotter’s name probably carries a little extra sting. He’s the son of former Pro Bowl linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Sr., who spent eight years with the Philadelphia Eagles across three separate stints, along with two years in Washington and one season with the Buccaneers in 2007.
Jeremiah Trotter Sr. made four Pro Bowls in his 11-year career and finished with 914 tackles, 12.5 sacks, 69 tackles for loss and nine interceptions.
And if that wasn’t enough of a reason for Josiah Trotter to enjoy getting one over on Dallas, his older brother, Jeremiah Trotter Jr., is in his third season with the Eagles. The Clemson product was a fifth-round pick and has grown into a useful role player on the Philadelphia defense.
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Dak Prescott Tunnel Confrontation Keeps Stirring Debate After Bucs Win
After the Buccaneers handled Dallas, the conversation around the game quickly shifted from the scoreboard to the tunnel. Dak Prescott was heckled as he walked off after the loss, with the man shouting that the performance was embarrassing, and Prescott stopped to confront him in the moment. The scene added another layer to a lopsided night and drew plenty of attention because it came as the Cowboys quarterback was already dealing with the weight of a frustrating result.
The debate only grew once a TikTok clip began circulating around the confrontation, feeding speculation about what happened next. Prescott acknowledged the criticism, while a local report identified the heckler as a car service driver rather than a stadium employee, complicating some of the early assumptions about who was involved. For Tampa Bay, it was the sort of postgame flashpoint that kept the win in the headlines for reasons far beyond the Bucs own performance. [Read more 🡒]
Baker Mayfield Is Still Driving The Bucs Through This QB Crisis
Baker Mayfield may be sidelined, but he has not disappeared from the Buccaneers quarterback room. With Mayfield out because of injury, Tampa Bay has handed the offense to Jalon Daniels, and the rookie has leaned on the veterans steady hand as he settles into a much bigger role than anyone expected this early in the season.
Daniels has said Mayfield has helped him get ready for games in ways that go beyond a quick tip or two, with support in practice, in film study and on the sideline. That kind of presence matters even more for a young quarterback who was thrust into the starting job, and it was part of the backdrop before Tampa Bay picked up its first win of the season in Dallas. [Read more 🡒]
Buccaneers Could Face One Painful Deadline Decision If Losses Keep Mounting
At 1-4, the Buccaneers are already staring at a season that can tilt quickly from disappointing to defining, and the pressure only grows if the losses keep stacking up. With a new head coach potentially in the picture next year, Tampa Bay has to start thinking about more than just surviving the week-to-week grind and whether parts of the roster can be turned into draft capital before the deadline.
Among the names worth monitoring is Chris Godwin, whose contract situation and recent usage make him part of the conversation if the front office decides to pivot. The same goes for a few other veterans, including Kenneth Gainwell and Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, as the Bucs weigh whether staying competitive now matters more than adding future assets in a season that already feels like it could be headed somewhere uncomfortable. [Read more 🡒]