Dak Prescott did not hide his disappointment after the Dallas Cowboys suffered a surprising 24-16 defeat to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at AT&T Stadium on Thursday night. Dallas entered the matchup as the clear favorite against a team that had yet to win a game this season, but the Cowboys failed to capitalize on their home-field advantage and fell to 2-3.
The loss was especially frustrating because Tampa Bay was playing without Baker Mayfield, with undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels making his second career start. However, the Buccaneers found ways to exploit Dallas on both sides of the ball, controlling possession and forcing costly turnovers. Prescott threw for 316 yards and a touchdown, but two interceptions contributed to another disappointing result for the Cowboys.
After the game, Prescott acknowledged that Dallas was expected to win and admitted that the performance came dangerously close to being embarrassing. Still, the quarterback stopped short of using that label because he believed it would take credit away from Tampa Bay’s performance and the work of head coach Todd Bowles.
What happened with Cowboys vs Bucs?
Dak Prescott made it clear that the Cowboys understood the expectations entering Thursday night’s matchup, but their own mistakes and turnovers were crucial.
With Tampa Bay winless and playing on the road with a rookie quarterback, Dallas had an opportunity to build momentum. Instead, the Buccaneers executed their game plan effectively, leaving Prescott and his teammates to deal with the consequences of a costly defeat.
“I think Schotty said it best in the locker room. In this league, you’ve got to win the games you’re supposed to win. And when a winless team comes into your home stadium on a Thursday night primetime game, yeah, we’re supposed to win that. It sucks. Right up there close to embarrassing but I don’t know if I would say that.”
Dak Prescott sends clear message after loss to Buccaneers
The Cowboys quarterback then explained why he was reluctant to describe the defeat as embarrassing, pointing to the quality of Tampa Bay’s coaching and the defensive strategy that helped the Buccaneers secure their first victory of the season. Prescott wanted to acknowledge that Dallas had been outplayed without diminishing what the opposing team accomplished.
“To use the word embarrassing, it’s tough. I feel like I’m discrediting the NFL if I use that, and particularly the Tampa Bay Bucs and the great Todd Bowles coach, defensive-coached team. The guy’s been a winning coach for a long time and whether he’s been a head coach or a defensive coordinator. The plan, what they did tonight, is the reason for that. To say embarrassing, I think I’d be discrediting them. But we were definitely supposed to win this game. It was a game we were supposed to have on paper.”
Prescott’s reaction highlighted the difficult position Dallas now faces after dropping to 2-3. The Cowboys have shown they can produce offensively, but turnovers and defensive struggles continue to undermine their efforts. With the Green Bay Packers next on the schedule, Prescott and the coaching staff will need to address those problems quickly if Dallas hopes to recover from a loss that few expected at home.
Key takeaways
- Dallas Cowboys fell to 2-3 after a 24-16 home loss to Tampa Bay.
- Dak Prescott threw two interceptions despite passing for 316 yards and one touchdown.
- Dak Prescott resisted calling the defeat embarrassing, citing respect for head coach Todd Bowles.
