ARLINGTON, Texas \u2013 Jerry Jones had his fingers entwined in front of him as he glanced up toward the big video board with a concerned look on his face. Right after his Dallas Cowboys fell behind against winless Tampa Bay, Dak Prescott threw an interception.<\/p>\n
Things were just starting to really unravel for the Cowboys, and the owner\u2019s expression would only get more bleak<\/a>, even though they had a chance late to escape without a loss. <\/p>\n The Cowboys (2-3) fell 24-16<\/a> on Thursday night to a Bucs team with undrafted rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels filling in for the injured Baker Mayfield. <\/p>\n \u201cExtraordinarily, extraordinarily disappointed,\u201d team owner Jones said afterward. \u201cYou really do need to get it done when it\u2019s there to take.\u201d<\/p>\n Prescott had another interception with 1:16 left when his throw deflected off reliable tight end Jake Ferguson\u2019s hands at the Bucs 12.<\/p>\n Playing at home for the only time in October, and in primetime for all to see, this was a chance for the Cowboys to build some momentum in the NFC East. And the opportunity for a second win in five days against another winless team before a bit of a break.<\/p>\n Instead, there will only be more questions before they play again after a nine-day gap between games. <\/p>\n \u201cYou wanna get right back to it, but it\u2019s good to dwell on things sometimes,\u201d Prescott said. \u201cTo really make the changes or make the adjustments that we need to for the better of our team, for the better of the offense, for the better of the individuals. … Be accountable to yourself, to your unit, to your position group, and let\u2019s push forward.\u201d<\/p>\n The Cowboys play Oct. 18 at Green Bay, then go to Philadelphia before playing at home again Nov. 1 against Arizona. <\/p>\n \u201cThis isn\u2019t fold the tents here. We are 2-3. We didn\u2019t expect to be 2-3,\u201d Jones said. \u201cWe didn\u2019t expect this. …We didn\u2019t expect this Tampa team to come in here 0-4, either.\u201d<\/p>\n The Bucs (1-4), whose touchdown before halftime was a 15-play drive that took just shy of 11 minutes, started must faster after the break. They went ahead to stay on two big runs that took only a minute. Bucky Irving ran for 72 yards, immediately followed by Emeka Egbuka\u2019s 14-yard TD run that gave them a 14-10 lead. <\/p>\n Then came the first pick by Prescott deep in Tampa Bay territory, and Irving added a 1-yard TD run before KaVontae Turpin fumbled the ensuing kickoff return. The Bucs then converted a third-and-21 on the drive that ended with Chase McLaughlin\u2019s 41-yard field for a 24-10 lead. <\/p>\n The Cowboys played their third game in 12 days, a stretch that began with 10-hour flights to and from Rio de Janeiro, where they lost 34-31 to Baltimore<\/a> after the Ravens got a big play and game-ending field goal in the final 7 seconds.<\/p>\n Dallas rebounded last Sunday with a 34-30 victory<\/a> at winless Houston, when CeeDee Lamb capped his career-high 17 catches for 189 yards with a 12-yard TD<\/a> in the final minute.<\/p>\n But Lamb had only two catches for 9 yards against the Bucs before getting sidelined by a quad injury.<\/p>\n After Tampa Bay bypassed a field goal chance and was stopped on fourth-and-goal from the 1 with 8 1\/2 minutes left, the Cowboys went 99 yards in 10 plays for Prescott\u2019s 18-yard TD to George Pickens before they failed on a 2-point conversion.<\/p>\n Dallas got a defensive stop with just under four minutes left, though on the third-down incompletion cornerback DaRon Bland had his hands on what could have been an easy pick-6. He had an NFL-record five interception returns for TDs in 2023.<\/p>\n That still gave Prescott and the Cowboys another chance, which ended with his late interception. <\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve got to trust the work that we\u2019re putting in and then more importantly, we\u2019ve got to come out and just execute better,\u201d Prescott said. \u201cI think our plan, the way we practice, the way we approach things is the right way, is the correct way. We\u2019ve just got to come up in the games and execute better and get it done.\u201d<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n