Dallas’ run defense failed at the point that matters most: the middle. Tampa Bay rushed for 241 yards on 39 attempts, averaged 6.2 yards per carry and beat the Cowboys 24-16 Thursday at AT&T Stadium. That performance made the game far easier for Jalon Daniels than it needed to be.
Tampa’s ground game extended possessions and left its inexperienced passer with a supporting role he handled well. Dallas had a chance to protect a halftime lead against a team still looking for its first win. Instead, it made the Buccaneers’ running backs the central problem.
The first warning was not purely a rushing drive
Tampa’s opening touchdown possession covered 73 yards in 15 plays and consumed 10:58. It mixed Daniels’ short completions and scrambles with Bucky Irving’s carries, and Dallas’ defensive holding erased a third-down sack that would have put the Buccaneers in a much worse spot. Daniels eventually connected with Irving for a 5-yard touchdown.
That drive should not be reduced to a simple series of inside runs. The penalties and short passing game mattered. Still, it established that Tampa could stay comfortable while Dallas struggled to create negative plays. Irving finished with 165 yards on 21 carries, and the Cowboys could neither keep him from breaking a long gain nor prevent him from helping close the game.
The second half supplied the unmistakable evidence. Tampa opened the third quarter with Irving ripping through the defense for 72 yards, followed immediately by Emeka Egbuka’s 14-yard rushing touchdown. Two plays covered 86 yards in one minute.
One explosive run can distort a defensive stat line; here it was followed by another successful rush, this one into the end zone. Dallas allowed Tampa to finish the opportunity immediately.
Later, Daniels hit Tez Johnson for 64 yards, putting Tampa in position to score again. The next meaningful sequence belonged to Irving: gains of 9 and 5 yards moved the Buccaneers close to the goal line, and he finished with a 1-yard touchdown. The quarterback had made the explosive pass, but the running back handled the closing argument.
Daniels deserves credit rather than dismissal. In his second career start, he completed 19 of 25 passes for 189 yards, threw one touchdown and had no interceptions. He added useful scrambles, including a 9-yard gain during Tampa’s long fourth-quarter possession.
His night was efficient because the game kept offering him manageable choices. That is still good quarterback play; it simply was not the heroic burden Dallas needed to impose.
Jerry Jones’ postgame reaction sharpened the organizational question. The Cowboys’ owner and general manager expressed surprise that Tampa had run so effectively between the tackles, credited the opponent and maintained confidence in defensive coordinator Christian Parker. Jones also remained open to trades involving players who could offer future value.
