Brian Schottenheimer Considers Personnel Changes After Cowboys Loss, Jerry Jones Reacts to Embarrassing Loss

Short of answers at the start of the season, there was no direct way to explain what happened during the Cowboys deflating loss at home 24-16 at the previously winless Buccaneers on Thursday night for coach Brian Schottenheimer.

Tampa Bay’s decisive 17-point third quarter behind undrafted rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels and Bucky Irving’s first 100-yard rushing outing in two years put the spotlight on the Cowboys’ second-year coach and his 2-3 start this fall.

Schottenheimer hinted at possible changes to the coaching staff after Dallas collapsed in all three phases of the game following two turnovers by Dak Prescott, defensive struggles and a lost fumble by KaVontae Turpin on a kickoff return.

“I’m going to look at everything,” Schottenheimer said. “I’m going to spend countless hours trying to figure it out and have an opportunity to step back, look at these five games and see what we need to improve on. … Yes, I think we’re evaluating everything, but at the end of the day, we’re five games in. I’m disappointed in the way we played tonight as a football team, and that’s just going to be part of the process.”

The Cowboys trailed 24-10 after the third quarter before a 10-play, 99-yard touchdown drive ending with a Prescott toss to George Pickens, which brought Dallas into possession with 5:26 remaining.

After forcing a three-and-out, the Cowboys moved to the Tampa Bay 22-yard line before Prescott’s throw up the middle was knocked away with 1:22 remaining, ending the threat. The Bucs doubled the Cowboys in time of possession and totaled 241 yards, 191 more than the opposition.

“Again, this is the National Football League, and it’s going to come down to the fourth quarter,” Schottenheimer said. “And even with such a poor performance, we had a chance to come back and try to win the game, and we didn’t.”

Schottenheimer called the loss a “missed opportunity” after his 12th loss in his first 22 games with the franchise after replacing Mike McCarthy ahead of the 2025 season.

Jerry Jones talks about loss

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said his team was noticeably dominated at the line of scrimmage, pointing to Irving’s production and his offense’s low effort. Javonte Williams finished with 12 carries for 45 yards and a touchdown as the Cowboys attempted just 13 carries on 55 offensive plays.

“Extraordinarily, extraordinarily disappointed,” Jones said via the team’s official website. “You really have to do it when he’s there to take it. They were basically very physical. I thought both of their fronts were really surprised the way they ran the ball, the way they ran it between the tackles. It was surprising.

“We thought if they were going to do it, they’d do it on the outside, and we thought we’d put it on the quarterback’s shoulders. Their team, their quarterback, all their players had a great win here tonight, and it was a tough loss for us.”

Without Baker Mayfield out with a hand injury, the Bucs entered the game 0-4 and last in the NFC South with one of the league’s most anemic offenses.

“Boy, I’ve been really disappointed in losses before, but this one was disappointing,” Jones said. “And I’m disappointed because I see growth potential here. And we need to have good experiences on an individual basis as well as as a team. And it wasn’t a good experience here.”

In five games, Dallas comes within two games of the Eagles in the NFC East and faces Green Bay next week, a team that has alternated wins and losses this season just like the Cowboys.