FRISCO, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys opened the season with optimism but sit at 2-3 and tied for second in the NFC East after Thursday’s 24-16 defeat to the previously winless Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The club faces the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field on Sunday (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC).
Coach Brian Schottenheimer said the team “are just getting started” and that time is on their side, but the results have been uneven. Schottenheimer is 9-12-1 as the Cowboys’ head coach. His team has posted consecutive wins only once under his tenure, during Weeks 11-13 last season when the club improved to 6-5-1; since that stretch he is 3-6.
Owner and general manager Jerry Jones said on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas that the focus must be on the immediate work of practice and preparing for Green Bay rather than long-term fixes. Jones remains open to additional trades; the Cowboys now hold four selections in the 2027 draft — a first-, second-, fourth- and seventh-round pick — after trading their 2028 second-round pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers to acquire cornerback Joey Porter Jr. on Oct. 1.
Defensive struggles have continued. Dallas has allowed at least 378 yards and 20 points in each of its first five games. Christian Parker is in his first season as coordinator, but the defense at times resembles the 2025 unit that finished near the bottom of league categories. Situational lapses have been costly, including a 27-yard completion with seven seconds remaining that set up Baltimore’s game-winning field goal in Week 3 and a third-and-21 conversion by Tampa Bay that led to a touchdown; before that play teams were 1-of-29 on third-and-20 or longer.
The offense has also underperformed its “Greatest Offense There Is” billing. The rushing attack gained 50 yards against Tampa Bay, and turnovers factored in losses to New York in Week 1 and Tampa Bay in Week 5. Schottenheimer’s game management drew scrutiny over the past three weeks, with questioned choices including late playcalling and a touchback decision at the end of the Ravens game, a missed 65-yard field-goal attempt at the end of the first half against Houston that preceded a 10-point deficit, and electing to go for two after cutting Tampa Bay’s lead to 24-16 with 5:26 remaining. Schottenheimer said conversations during the week are “very, very strong” and that game-day reactions consider multiple factors. Quarterback Dak Prescott said his goal is to ensure “guys don’t lose belief in one another.”
