Updated October 9, 2026, 2:17 a.m. ET
Clarification: The headline and text of this story have been updated to better identify the person who made the comment to Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott.
Tensions were high inside AT&T Stadium after the Dallas Cowboys lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 24-16 on Thursday Night Football.
Local FOX television station KDFW reported that a stadium employee said he was “embarrassing” when Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott passed him on his way back to the locker room on Thursday, Oct. 8, after the upset loss that dropped Dallas to 2-3 on the season; it was the Buccaneers’ first victory of the year. The reporter later clarified that they were told the worker was an “auto service driver.”
The video posted online features the word spoken off-camera and includes Prescott’s reaction. Another video from the scene showed Prescott calling the individual a “tough guy” and calling for him to be fired.
“Get his (expletive) out of here,” the quarterback said.
Prescott was asked about the incident after the game.
“I mean, it’s not that they’re wrong,” Prescott began, adding “but the thing is, you know, I… I don’t know if it was an employee, if it was a driver, whoever it was, he’s free to say what he thinks.”
Later, Prescott was asked if he considered the person’s actions “disrespectful.”
“You know, when he said it, I just looked at him and at that point he looked away, didn’t look, and then when I turned my head back he said something else,” Prescott said. “That’s the right part, as a man or as a person, don’t be afraid to say what you think. Just say it. Don’t get discouraged by the reaction you’re going to get.
“If you say it’s embarrassing, say it’s embarrassing, if you tell me, tell me. You know what I mean? … I hate that we even talk about it to be honest with you.”
Prescott backed away slightly when asked if the loss was “embarrassing” but did not dispute that it was a game the Cowboys should have won.
“Using the word embarrassing is difficult. I feel like I’m discrediting the NFL if I use that, and especially the Tampa Bay Bucs and a great defensive team coached by Todd Bowles. … The plan and what (the Bucs) did tonight is the reason for (this loss). To say embarrassing, I think I would discredit them, but we were definitely supposed to win this game.
“It’s a game we were supposed to have on paper or however you want to look at it. I think (Brian Schottenheimer) said it best in the locker room, in this league you have to win the games you’re supposed to win. When a winless team walks into your stadium on a Thursday night, prime time, yeah, we’re supposed to win that. So, it sucks and it’s almost embarrassing, but I don’t know if I would say that.”
Schottenheimer, the Cowboys head coach, was also asked about the incident during his postgame press conference. He did not dispute the comment made by a team employee when asked and said it was “motivating.”
“We believe in what we’re doing,” the second-year head coach continued. “We think we have good players and good coaches. We think the solution is in this room. We’re going to get back to work.”
Schottenheimer was also asked if he interpreted the interaction, directed at the team’s face, as disrespectful.
“I didn’t say I didn’t take that as disrespect. You said that,” Schottenheimer retorted. “I didn’t say that. I said it was motivating. People are allowed to say whatever they want.”
Prescott threw two interceptions in the loss, the second inside the two-minute warning on a pass that should have been caught by tight end Jake Ferguson but instead deflected upfield and ultimately into the diving arms of Tampa Bay linebacker Alex Anzalone. Prescott completed 24 of 42 passes for 316 yards and a touchdown.
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