By Ailene Bass
GLENDALE, AZ. — After a preseason Dallas Cowboys win over the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday, August 22nd, team player Shiyazh Pete played six snaps against the Cardinals in the second half of the game, and was humbled to have an entire section of Navajo community members give him a standing ovation. The Cowboys scored 34 over 13, and the Dallas Cowboys official TikTok page uploaded a clip of head coach Brian Schottenheimer congratulating the team as well as player Shiyazh Pete, who is Salish and Navajo. Shiyazh is currently unsigned with the Dallas Cowboys, as a rookie offensive tackle/guard, but his words of gratitude have allowed the TikTok clip to go viral. His humility held the entire locker room as he spoke.
“That was an incredible win and I am very fortunate to be amongst you and to, to play on the same field, wear the same star holden on our chests, and I’m proud of us. I’m proud of how far we’ve come. Man, this game, fate, brought us here as strangers but this game, this star, this team, will make us brothers.”
The team can be heard cheering and over the weekend, the larger message of community interwoven with sportsmanship have taken ahold of the public’s attention. At the game, many Navajo nation members brought flags in support of Shiyazh, who was born on the Flathead Indian Reservation. He is 23 years old, and at a height of 6’9” and weighing at 309 pounds, his hard work as a team player has pulled off in the Dallas Cowboys training camp.
Links:
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7535905/2026/08/25/shiyazh-pete-viral-speech-locker-room-cowboys
https://www.dallasnews.com/sports/cowboys/article/shiyazh-pete-navajo-nation-arizona-22399872.php
https://www.facebook.com/GovMLG/videos/shiyazh-pete-speech/1112941424744621/
