This is, perhaps, the biggest upset of the 2026 season so far. The Dallas Cowboys had a supposedly easy matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Tampa Bay was 0-4 heading into the game, and they were fielding an undrafted rookie at quarterback. Even with Dallas' struggles this season, many felt that Dallas should have had this game in the bag.

Instead, the Cowboys dropped the ball completely in front of their own fans. A 24-16 scoreline masks just how brutal this game was for Dallas. Let's look at which players are to blame for this loss.

Defense. All of them.

Yeah, this one was to be expected. The Cowboys' defense continues to hamstring the team's chances of winning week after week, and this game was no exception.

Dallas' run defense was non-existent in this game. The Buccaneers were not a particularly good running team, yet they recorded 241 rushing yards on the day. Bucky Irving went off for the Bucs, gashing the Cowboys to the tune of 165 rushing yards and two total touchdowns. Tampa Bay just ran the ball down Dallas' throat, and they did nothing to stop them from doing so.

The passing attack wasn't much better. Even with a rookie quarterback under center, the Cowboys' defense still struggled. Missed tackles turned five-yard hitches into first downs. Penalties gave the Buccaneers good field position and bailed out the Tampa Bay offense. Allowing Tampa Bay to convert on a 3rd-and-21 play with what is essentially a long curl route was just an indicator of just how bad the defense was this game.

Everyone knew that this defense was bad, but no one expected them to be THIS bad.

Kavontae Turpin

Special teams in the NFL are just like referees in any sports league. If you're talking about a team's special teams unit… then something went wrong. That's exactly what happened with the Cowboys tonight with Kavontae Turpin.

After a touchdown by the Buccaneers, the Cowboys were looking to get another chance to score and keep the game close in the third quarter. Turpin was up to receive the kickoff, and all seemed well, until it wasn't.

Turpin had the ball stripped from him while he was being tackled, and the Buccaneers were able to recover the football. Dallas did prevent a touchdown in that drive, but Tampa Bay was still able to score a field goal to further extend the lead. That's just completely unacceptable, fully swinging the game in the Buccaneers' favor.

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Ryan Flournoy and Jake Ferguson

This might have been the unluckiest game for Dak Prescott. Prescott has two turnovers on the record for this game, but both picks should arguably not be credited to the Cowboys quarterback. Prescott's first interception was on a slant intended for Ryan Flournoy. The ball was placed reasonably well, but Flournoy could not handle the pass, and it popped out of his hands. A Buccaneers defender was right there to pick off the pass after a short tip drill.

The second interception was even more brutal. Flournoy's drop was brutal, but he was at least covered and in some traffic. The next interception, an in-breaker intended for tight end Jake Ferguson, was just… unforgivable. Ferguson was wide open, with no one in front or behind him. However, the ball just went through his hands and straight to the Buccaneers. It was the final drive of the night for the Cowboys, who still had a chance of somehow salvaging the game if they scored on that drive.

The Cowboys came into the season knowing that their offense would need to be near-perfect in order to even stand a chance, especially considering their terrible defense. Mistakes like this might be passable for other teams… but it's back-breaking for this team in particular.