Dallas Cowboys vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers NFL Playoffs Wild Card Prediction Game Preview
Dallas Cowboys vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers NFL Playoffs Wild Card prediction, game preview, odds, how to watch, Monday, January 16
Dallas Cowboys vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers NFL Playoffs Wild Card Prediction Game Preview
Dallas Cowboys vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers How To Watch
Date: Monday, January 16
Game Time: 8:15 ET
Venue: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, FL
How To Watch: ESPN/ABC
Record: Dallas Cowboys (12-5), Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-9)
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Why Dallas Cowboys Will Win the NFC Wild Card
It might sound like a basic question, but …
Is Tampa Bay any good?
It got thrown a cookie as the 8-9 division winner who landed in the fourth spot, but there’s no running game, the defense can get picked on a bit too easily, and the passing game isn’t really all that great even with 12 throwing it more than anyone.
Dallas needs to get out of its own head. More on that in a moment, but as long as the offense takes a deep breath and does what it’s capable of, and as long as the defense can simply win third downs, all should be fine.
But back to the question – is Tampa Bay any good? Short answer, not really.
It has the weapons to get hot for one game, and it’s Tom Brady with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin – there will be passing yards. Dallas has the playmakers to keep up.
The Buccaneer ground game is historically awful, the defense doesn’t do enough in the secondary, and for all the offensive talent, the team doesn’t really score.
The 30 against Carolina two weeks ago was an outlier – it’s been a struggle to get past 17, and that’s not getting it done against this Dallas offense.
If this attack finds its groove early, and if Dak Prescott is sharp in the first quarter, forget it. Even with Brady, the Buccaneers can’t keep up.
But …
– Why Tampa Bay Buccaneers Will Win
– Cowboys vs Buccaneers Prediction, What’s Going to Happen
NEXT: Why Tampa Bay Buccaneers Will Win the NFC Wild Card
Why Tampa Bay Buccaneers Will Win the NFC Wild Card
It might sound like a basic question, but …
Is Dallas up to the moment?
There’s pressure, and there’s the pressure of an aging – but aren’t we all? – Jerry Jones desperate for this thing to work again at a Super Bowl level for the first time in three decades.
The franchise hasn’t been out of the divisional round of the playoffs since 1995. It hasn’t won a playoff game since 2018, and this is just the fourth playoff appearance since 2009.
Who does the least with the most? Who’s the Texas Longhorns or Texas A&M Aggies of the NFL? Here you go.
Dallas is the better team. If it plays like it can and Tampa Bay plays like it can, Dallas wins. But at home, if Brady starts to get hot, and this comes down to mistakes, execution in the clutch, and who can come through in the big moment …
12.
Dallas has a turnover problem with 14 in the last seven games, but that’s sort of the cost of doing business in this attack. Tampa Bay needs to capitalize on every opportunity, and …
– Cowboys vs Buccaneers Prediction, What’s Going to Happen
NEXT: What’s Going To Happen, Who’s Going to Win Dallas Cowboys vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers NFC Wild Card
What’s Going To Happen, Who’s Going to Win Dallas Cowboys vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers NFC Wild Card
Tom Brady has to go off.
Dallas is sort of weird in that it seems to do better in shootouts. It’s happy when the other side is able to fire away, because that opens things up more for its own attack – there’s a reason Dallas is 5-1 when allowing 210 passing yards or more.
What’s even weirder considering how much Tampa Bay has to throw, it was only 2-3 when Brady hit 300 yards. For a team that couldn’t/didn’t run, it was the ground game that sometimes made the difference.
Tampa Bay hit 100 rushing yards three times. It won all three games. It’s not hitting 100 rushing yards in this, even though it’ll try.
Brady will get his yards and his moments, but Dallas will be too balanced, the running game too good, and Dak Prescott will overcome a rough first quarter with a big second half.
Dallas Cowboys vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers NFC Wild Card Prediction, Line
CFN Prediction: Dallas 27, Tampa Bay 23
Line: Dallas -2.5, o/u: 45.5
ATS Confidence out of 5: 3
Dallas Cowboys vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers Must See Rating: 4.5
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