Jerry Jones watched with concern as his Dallas Cowboys slipped behind the winless Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday night, a lead sealed by two late interceptions from quarterback Dak Prescott. The Cowboys fell 24-16 at home in Arlington, Texas, dropping to 2-3 in the NFL season while the Buccaneers earned their first victory with undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels filling in for the injured Baker Mayfield.
Prescott’s second interception, with just over a minute left, came when his pass deflected off tight end Jake Ferguson near the Buccaneers’ 12-yard line, ending Dallas’s final attempt at a comeback. The Cowboys had battled back after trailing but couldn’t overcome mistakes that shifted momentum firmly in Tampa Bay’s favour.
The Buccaneers’ only first-half touchdown came from a methodical 15-play drive that lasted nearly 11 minutes. After halftime, the Bucs accelerated quickly with two runs covering 72 yards by Bucky Irving and a 14-yard touchdown run by Emeka Egbuka, putting Tampa Bay ahead 14-10. Prescott then threw his first interception deep in Buccaneers territory, setting up a 1-yard touchdown run by Irving. Following that, KaVontae Turpin fumbled a kickoff return, and Tampa Bay capitalised with a third-and-21 conversion that led to Chase McLaughlin’s 41-yard field goal, extending the lead to 24-10.
The Cowboys, playing their third game in 12 days, had just come off a 34-30 win over the Houston Texans, who were also winless. That game saw wide receiver CeeDee Lamb haul in a career-high 17 catches for 189 yards, capped by a last-minute touchdown. But Lamb was limited against Tampa Bay, catching only two passes for nine yards before leaving with a quad injury.
After the Buccaneers failed on a fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line with about eight and a half minutes remaining, Dallas mounted a 99-yard, 10-play drive. Prescott connected with George Pickens for an 18-yard touchdown, but the Cowboys failed the two-point conversion attempt, leaving them behind 24-16.
The Cowboys earned one more chance after a defensive stop, but Prescott’s final interception closed out their hopes of salvaging a result on primetime at home. The team now faces a nine-day break before heading to Green Bay, followed by a trip to Philadelphia. Dallas will not play again at home until November 1 against Arizona.
The Buccaneers improved to 1-4 with the win behind Daniels, who stepped in after Mayfield’s injury. The victory snapped Tampa Bay’s losing streak and provided a rare bright spot in an otherwise difficult start to the season.
According to Yahoo Sports.
