Todd Bowles got away with one Thursday night, but it came far too close to turning into a disaster.
With 8:36 left and Tampa Bay up 24-10 on Dallas, the Buccaneers coach faced a fourth-and-goal from the 1. He chose to chase the touchdown instead of taking the field goal, a decision that kept the score where it was and left the door cracked for the Cowboys.
“We talked about it, and with less than a yard, and the way we were running the football, we were trying to put the game away,” Bowles told reporters after the game.
The problem is that the field goal would have done the same thing. A 17-point cushion still requires three scores to erase, and with just over half a quarter left, Dallas would have needed a near-perfect finish to get back into it.
Instead, the failed try opened the game up just enough for the Cowboys to make things uncomfortable. They went 10 plays and 99 yards to cut the lead to one score.
At one point, DaRon Bland nearly came down with a pick-six, and after that Dallas kept pushing until a fortunate bounce finally stopped the drive. Tampa Bay still needed one more strong run from Bucky Irving to put the game to bed.
That’s what makes the choice sting even with the win in hand. If the Cowboys had finished the comeback, Bowles would have been staring at a much bigger storm today. Even with Tampa Bay surviving, the fact that a game with a three-score lead became a sweat matters, especially for ownership if this season starts to tilt the wrong way.
And the next stretch will tell the story fast. The Buccaneers have the Steelers, Panthers, Falcons and Bears before their Week 10 bye.
Win at least two of those four, and they can keep the pressure down. Drop three or more, and the conversation around the head coach could get ugly in a hurry.
In Other News...
Todd Bowles Had A Sideline Scare During Bucs' First Win
The Buccaneers first win of the season came with a brief sideline scare for Todd Bowles, who was caught up in the kind of post-play celebration that can get chaotic in a hurry. Late in the fourth quarter against the Cowboys, Tampa Bay was erupting after an interception and a run by Buccaneers players when Bowles took a shot in the stomach from a helmet, turning a moment of relief into a few tense seconds on the sideline.
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 🡒]
Dak Prescott's Postgame Frustration Has Cowboys Fans Debating This Team
The Cowboys left Thursday night with another loss, and the postgame mood around AT&T Stadium turned testy almost immediately. Dallas dropped to 2-3 after falling to the Buccaneers, and what should have been a straightforward reaction to a rough defeat quickly shifted when Dak Prescott took issue with a stadium workers comment about the result being embarrassing.
Prescott made clear he can live with blunt criticism, but he was bothered by the way the exchange unfolded after he noticed the comment. For Tampa Bay, it was the kind of road win that does more than add to the standings, because it also leaves the opponent sorting through frustration, accountability and a little bit of drama long after the final whistle. [Read more 🡒]
Todd Bowles Sideline Scare Added Tension To A Much-Needed Bucs Win
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 🡒]