Dak Prescott didn’t bristle at being called out after the Cowboys’ latest stumble. What got under his skin was the way it happened.
Following Dallas’ 2-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday night at AT&T Stadium, Prescott took issue with a stadium worker who labeled the defeat “embarrassing” as the quarterback walked toward the locker room. A video captured Prescott hearing the remark and looking back toward the source.
When he met with reporters afterward, Prescott said the problem wasn’t the criticism itself. It was that the worker seemed to back off once he realized Prescott had heard him.
“When he said it, I just happened to look at him, and at that point, he looked away,” Prescott said, via ESPN, which reported that the worker was a third-party contractor. “And when I turned my head back, he said something else.
And so 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.
And so, if you’re saying it’s embarrassing, say it’s embarrassing. If you’re saying it to me, then say it to me.
Don’t go back on it. So that’s all that was, and hate that it’s even being talked about, to be honest with you.”
The loss was a rough one for Dallas in every sense. The Cowboys were at home, on a short week, and still came up short against a Buccaneers team that arrived without a win. Tampa Bay got its first victory of the season behind undrafted rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels.
Prescott didn’t dispute the bigger picture, either. He said the Cowboys have to handle the kind of game they’re expected to win.
“I think [Brian Schottenheimer] said it best in the locker room: In this league, you’ve got to win the games you’re supposed to win,” he said. “And when a winless team comes into your home stadium in a Thursday night primetime game, yeah, we’re supposed to win that.”
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Bowles was seen grimacing and dropping to one knee before being reported as okay shortly after, which allowed the focus to shift back to a much-needed victory. The incident was part of the emotional release that followed the play, though reports did not identify which player made the celebratory contact. [Read more 🡒]
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The Buccaneers finally got the result they needed, beating the Cowboys 24-16 for their first win of the season behind rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels. It was a much-needed lift for a team that had spent the first month looking for something to stabilize around, and getting to 1-4 at least gives Tampa Bay a little breathing room heading into next weeks matchup with the Steelers.
The win came with a brief scare on the sideline when Todd Bowles was seen down on one knee and appeared to be dealing with discomfort before getting back up and saying he would be okay. For a team already trying to find its footing, even a moment like that can add tension to an afternoon that should have been about relief, and it only underscored how much the Bucs needed a cleaner, calmer path to their first victory. [Read more 🡒]
Buccaneers Shut Down Dallas And Sent Dak Into Another Brutal Night
The Buccaneers did what they needed to do Sunday night, holding off Dallas 24-16 in a game that kept the Cowboys chasing from behind and left them with another frustrating finish against a playoff-caliber opponent. Dak Prescott threw for 316 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions, and while Dallas made things interesting late, the result still pushed the Cowboys back below .500 and added another layer of pressure to a season already filled with uneven stretches.
The closing moments only sharpened the sting, because the Cowboys had one last shot to extend the night and keep their rally alive. Instead, the comeback came apart in a sequence that fit the way the game had gone for Dallas, and the postgame scene was no kinder as Prescott made his way through the tunnel after an ugly loss. [Read more 🡒]