Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles was left on his knees in agony after watching his team collect their first win of the season.
Moments after Alex Anzalone caught a game-sealing interception off a pass from Dak Prescott with just over one minute to play, Amazon Prime’s cameras cut to Bowles in agony on the sideline.
The 62-year-old dropped down to one knee and was grimacing in pain while his team let the clock run out on their 24-16 victory.
Fans watching the game were concerned for Bowles’ health, especially given he has been under serious pressure in recent weeks after the team’s 0-4 start to the new season.
But ESPN’s Jenna Laine later clarified on X that Bowles was struck in the stomach by a player’s helmet as they celebrated Anzalone’s interception.
Bowles insisted after the game he was okay as the Bucs celebrated their first win of the season with rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels under center instead of star Baker Mayfield.
Bucs coach Todd Bowles was left on his knees in agony after watching his team beat Dallas
Bowles was struck by a player’s helmet as they celebrated a game-sealing interception
Dominant running back Bucky Irving rushed for 165 yards and scored two touchdowns
Bucky Irving ran for 165 yards, including a 72-yard run to set up the touchdown that put Tampa Bay ahead for good while scoring twice himself.
Daniels threw a touchdown pass to Irving in the first half while directing a turnover-free offense and amid several Dallas miscues, finishing an efficient 19 of 25 for 189 yards as the Bucs piled up 241 yards rushing.
Daniels is filling in for Mayfield, who’s expected to be sidelined at least one more game with a dislocated thumb on his throwing hand.
‘Six months ago, if you would have told me that my first win would have been on a Thursday night, (Amazon) Prime football game, I don’t know what I would have told you,’ said Daniels, who threw three interceptions in a 17-14 loss to Green Bay in his debut.
‘Like I keep saying, through all the highs and lows, the bads, the goods, go through every single emotion because at the end of the day, it makes you better and prepares you for any situation that comes down the line.’
‘We lost the first quarter of the season,’ Bowles added. ‘We didn’t lose the second, third or fourth. We’ve still got to play those. So we started the second quarter tonight. It’s a long way to climb out, but at the same time, we’re upbeat and if we played as hard and played as effective, we’ll be OK.’
Dak Prescott led a 99-yard drive and threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to George Pickens in the fourth quarter before his second interception off a tipped pass helped Tampa Bay clinch the win in the final two minutes.
The Cowboys, who are now 2-3, continued an up-and-down start to the season, this time with an offense that was at times as sloppy as the defense has been in both seasons under coach Brian Schottenheimer.
