Dak Prescott Shows Visible Frustration With Brian Schottenheimer Play-Calling

Emotions have been running high since the Dallas Cowboys' heartbreaking Week 3 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in Rio de Janeiro, and everyone is looking for an explanation of what went wrong at the end of the game.

There was a catastrophic series of mistakes in all phases of the game that led to the Cowboys letting victory slip away, but none are under as much scrutiny as the head-scratching call from Brian Schottenheimer on third down at the end of the game.

Rather than running the ball to take some time off the clock or calling a play that would give the Cowboys multiple options in the endzone, Schottenheimer dialed up a quick one-read pass. If the receiver, George Pickens in this case, wasn't open, Prescott was to throw it away.

There's one problem: the play ran virtually no time off the clock and limited Dallas on their final offensive play of the game.

Schottenheimer says he “overcoached” #Cowboys QB Dak Prescott to throw it away on third-and-goal….

After this play, I used EVERY cuss word possible!!!

At some point, Dak Prescott has to use those 11 YEARS of NFL experience and GO ROGUE!!!!

Dak, I’ve got nothing but love and… pic.twitter.com/pk4YaaDAvC
— Law Nation Media (@LawsNation) September 28, 2026

Just a few plays earlier, the Cowboys also had a questionable call.

Again, instead of running the ball while they were inches away from a touchdown, Schottenheimer called a pylon fade in the back of the endzone.

I could even excuse a PA boot although I still would’ve just handed it off but you with a 1 WR back pylon Fade which has to be the lowest % throw in the history of the NFL 🤦🏽‍♂️ #DallasCowboys pic.twitter.com/l8irzc1BmB
— WilliamInPhilly (@wcwpoet) September 28, 2026

Unfortunately, that cost the Cowboys a shot at a touchdown, and we know what happened from there. Now that everyone has had some time to digest what happened, a video of Prescott on the sideline after the series of questionable play calls has gone viral.

While you can't say with 100 percent certainty what Prescott said, he does seem to be openly expressing his frustration with the call.

Dak Prescott's Frustration Boiling Over

While lip-reading is no exact science, plenty of Cowboys fans see the same thing in this video. It appears that Prescott says, "Worst play call all day. F*cking trash."

If that's what Prescott was actually saying, there is some good and some bad. The good: Prescott is frustrated and perhaps we could see him be more outspoken and checking out of plays. The bad: Tension between the quarterback and coach is never a good thing.

Ultimately, this is likely just competitive nature and frustration in an intense game. It won't impact the relationship between Prescott and Scotty. But there was another moment after the game where Prescott more directly called out the play-calling down the stretch, specifically the lack of run plays deep in scoring territory.

https://t.co/THieqjf0vj pic.twitter.com/HXESjysrlH
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) September 28, 2026

Prescott's response to the question was simple: "Run the ball when we get down there... we need to run the ball." Hopefully those comments echo through The Star and the Cowboys' coaching staff doesn't shy away from getting physical near the goalline.

It certainly would have helped on Sunday evening.

W'e'll have to see how the Cowboys regroup after such a heartbreaking loss, but as long as the team can channel its frustration and emotion into the right channels, we can all hope for a bounce-back performance against the Houston Texans in Week 4.

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