It was just the second game of the NFL career of Dallas Cowboys rookie linebacker Jaishawn Barham, the team’s third-round pick out of Michigan, and after some rough moments in his debut in New York last week, he came up with some big plays on Sunday in the 37-20 win over the Commanders. He had the biggest defensive play of the game with 7:15 to go in the third quarter, when he read a short screen pass to Dyami Brown and unloaded with a big hit just as Brown was making the catch. Brown fumbled to the Commanders’ 13-yard line, setting up a touchdown that made a 20-13 lead 27-13.
That was not the only thing Barham was coughing up in the game, though. Just about three minutes after making the play on Brown, Barham was back at his linebacker spot and was seen on the Fox broadcast vomiting onto the field. Not once, but twice.
As one observer noted, “Jaishawn Barham with the pre-snap double-puke, which feels like a pretty good excuse to jog through the ensuing snap.”
Jaishawn Barham Needed Some Fluids
The clip of Barham made the rounds on social media, a surprise moment of–we think–nerves for a young Cowboys player who had handled himself well in the win.
Podcaster Tom Downey wrote, “Oh so this is why Jaishawn Barham didn’t play as much in the 2nd half The old puke and puke again move.”
Another observer noted, “Jaishawn Barham just threw up ALL over the field. Get that man some fluids ASAP!”
And another joked that Barham’s bodily fluids were a signal to defenses. He wrote: “Did you notice the ‘tell’ with Cowboys LB Jaishawn Barham? When he pukes, he drops back in coverage. When he doesn’t puke, he’s blitzing. I hope opposing teams don’t pick up on this tendency.”
Cowboys Have Confidence in the Rookie
Barham was a star of the preseason, and quickly worked his way up the Cowboys depth chart since the draft. He is one of the hardest hitters on the team, but he is still raw in many ways and still trying to polish up his game. But considering the weakness that the Cowboys have had in filling the linebacker hole in recent years, he has been a very solid find.
Defensive lineman Quinnen Williams spoke about Barham after Sunday’s game.
“The plays he has been making are superdope, I have seen him make them in practice,” Williams said. “I’m super-confident in him. Like I say, keep building on the things he do well, just like all of us, we got to keep building on the things we’ve got to correct. He played a great game. He played phenomenal. When it comes to wearing the green dot as a rookie, second game of the year, getting everybody in order, especially up front. Different things like that. Just continue to improve—we all have huge trust in him.”
Cowboys Rookie Turns Heads With On-Field ‘Double Puke’