Rico Dowdle warned the Cowboys to “buckle up” ahead of Sunday’s game in Carolina. 

The Panthers’ running back delivered on his end of the bargain, putting up 183 rushing yards and a touchdown while helping his new team take down is old team on a last-second field goal, which he helped set up.

On the Panthers’ final 15-play, 71-yard drive, which resulted in a 33-yard field goal by Ryan Fitzgerald to win the game 30-27, Dowdle rushed for 25 yards.

Dowdle had a simple message for the Cowboys after the game. 

“They weren’t buckled up,” he said. 

Dowdle finished the day with 239 yards from scrimmage, and after rushing for 206 yards and collecting 234 from scrimmage last week, Dowdle recorded the most productive two-game stretch in franchise history.

Christian McCaffery previously held the distinction during a stretch in 2019 in games against the Texans and Jaguars. 

“Film don’t lie, man, everybody in Bank of America Stadium could see what No. 5 was doing out there,” Panthers receiver Tetairoa McMillan told reporters after the game about Dowdle. “He’s a big part of why this offense is going. Shout out to Rico.”

Dowdle spent five seasons with the Cowboys after he was signed in 2020 as an undrafted free agent and became the first undrafted player in Dallas history to rush for more than 1,000 yards during the 2024 season. 

But the Cowboys opted to let Dowdle leave via free agency last offseason and he signed a one-year, $2.75 million deal with the Panthers.

The win moved the Panthers to 3-3 on the season, and it marked their second consecutive win after a victory over the Dolphins in Week 5. 

While Carolina started their first two games of the year with losses, they have won three of their last four games and will face the winless Jets next weekend.