It’s official: Dallas Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer has the hottest seat in the NFL.
Schottenheimer was stumped on the sideline at AT&T Stadium on Thursday night as his squad fell 24-16 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who entered the game 0-4 and started a rookie quarterback in his first career road game.
Jalon Daniels was quite efficient against a reeling Cowboys defense, which came into this game as the third-worst in the league in terms of yards allowed per game (389.5) and fifth-worst in points allowed (28). The defensive side of the ball was a problem during Schottenheimer’s inaugural season leading the Cowboys in 2025, and with 34-year-old Christian Parker as defensive coordinator, it’s more of the same in 2026.
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The reason Schottenheimer’s seat is the hottest is because the man facing him on the opposite sideline came into Week 5 in that position first.
Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles is fighting for his job security after a brutal start to the season. Yes, his starting quarterback, Baker Mayfield, is out, but the Buccaneers did not look good before his injury. And since Tampa Bay couldn’t make the playoffs last season despite a red-hot start, Bowles needs to start stacking wins.
The state of Tampa Bay, and a Dallas victory over the Houston Texans in Week 4, led Vegas to mark the Cowboys as a clear-cut favorite at home. But Dak Prescott never felt comfortable like he did in Week 4, with Bowles drawing up his signature blitzes throughout the four quarters, and the Dallas defense continued to be passive.
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Tampa Bay found itself down at halftime, 10-7, but shifty running back Bucky Irving changed the entire momentum of the contest when he sprinted 72 yards on the opening drive of the third quarter to set up an Emeka Egbuka touchdown. In just two plays, the Bucs went 86 yards and took the lead, shocking the sold-out crowd.
To make matters worse, the Cowboys would turn the ball over their next three possessions, leading to a lopsided game. Prescott threw an interception, and Daniels found Tez Johnson in busted coverage for a 64-yard catch-and-run. Irving scored his second touchdown of the game to further the Bucs’ lead, and Prescott wouldn’t even get the ball back after KaVontae Turpin fumbled the ensuing kickoff, which Tampa Bay recovered.
With a Chase McLaughlin field goal making it 24-10, the Cowboys felt desperate at the end of the third quarter, going for it on fourth down near midfield and failing to convert.
There was, however, some hope provided by a key stop from this lackluster defense. On fourth-and-goal from the one-yard line, Bowles decided to go for the kill shot, hoping to punch one into the end zone and make it a 31-10 game in the fourth quarter. But Sean Tucker, their short-yardage specialist in the backfield, was unable to punch it home.
From there, Schottenheimer put on his best play-calling hat and recognized that momentum was shifting toward Dallas despite the Buccaneers’ 99-yard drive. He and Prescott delivered.
George Pickens capped that 99-yard drive with a 17-yard touchdown catch, his first of the season, to make it a one score game after a two-point conversion failed.
The momentum continued, as the Buccaneers went three-and-out, and with ample time as well as timeouts, Prescott could go down the field and perhaps tie the game with a touchdown and two-point conversion. Instead, more disaster for the Cowboys in this primetime matchup, as tight end Jake Ferguson, usually as sure-handed as they come for Dallas, had a Prescott pass go right through his hands, hit his face mask and land in the arms of Buccaneers linebacker Alex Anzalone while in Tampa Bay territory.
This time, Daniels and the Buccaneers’ offense didn’t squander the chance to put the Cowboys away, as Irving picked up the necessary first down to allow his rookie quarterback some victory kneels to end the game.
Sure, the Cowboys’ record still reads 2-3 compared to the Buccaneers’ 1-4. But Jerry Jones demands winning in Dallas, and this was a brutal loss for a coach already stirring speculation about whether he’s right for one of the most coveted jobs in the sport.
There’s still many games left to play, but it’s truly heating up for Schottenheimer after this one.
