At the end of the 2024 regular season, the 8-6 Bucs will take on the 6-8 Cowboys this weekend on Sunday Night Football at AT&T Stadium. Tampa Bay is aiming for its fifth straight win after a bye, and a win would move the team one step closer to a fourth consecutive NFC South title and a fifth consecutive playoff appearance.
The Bucks are coming off a 40-17 road win over the Chargers last week and are aiming to finish the regular season with a 6-2 record on the road. Meanwhile, the Cowboys have won three of their past four games and are holding out glimmers of hope of making the playoffs themselves despite losing quarterback Dak Prescott midway through the season in November. There is. they probably need to win and But please ask for help.
Dallas is 1-6 at home this season, and Tampa Bay would like to improve that to 1-7. That would keep the pressure on Atlanta and set up a winning scenario in Week 17.
Here’s a preview of Sunday’s Bucks vs. Cowboys matchup:
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Bucs QB Tom Brady – Photo by Cliff Welch/PR
The most recent matchup between the Bucs and Cowboys took place in January 2023, when Dallas came to Raymond James Stadium and defeated Tampa Bay in the NFC Wild Card Round. The Cowboys’ 31-14 victory marked the final game of Tom Brady’s storied NFL career. Dallas scored the first 24 points and eventually took a 31-6 lead early in the fourth quarter. Dak Prescott completed 25 of 33 passes for 305 yards and four touchdowns in the game, while Brady completed 35 of 66 passes for 351 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception.
The last regular-season meeting between these two teams, and the last time they met at Jerry World, took place just four months ago on Sunday Night Football to open the 2022 season. The Bucs went into the game 19-3, with Leonard Fournette rushing for 127 yards on 21 carries and Mike Evans catching 5 passes for 71 yards and a memorable one-handed touchdown grab. I won. Ryan Succop kicked four field goals to lead the way, and Evans’ touchdown effectively put the game out of reach.
Overall, the Cowboys lead the all-time regular season series against the Bucs with a 13-6 record, but Tampa Bay has won the past two (2021 and 2022 season openers).
What’s going on with the Bucks and Cowboys heading into Week 16?
Bucs OC Liam Cohen, QB Baker Mayfield, HC Todd Bowles – Photo by Cliff Welch/PR
The Bucks were successful again, delaying the season for the second year in a row. They went from 4-7 to 9-8 in 2023, which was good enough for their third straight district championship. They fell into a similar hole this year with a 4-6 record, but won four straight during the bye week, putting them in position to increase their win total in 2023. Stay on top of the NFC South Another year.
A lighter schedule helped Tampa Bay turn around, with the team moving from games against the Ravens and Chiefs to matches against the Giants and Raiders. But that doesn’t mean discounting anything tod bowles And Company has managed to get by in recent weeks, with both offense and defense playing their part in this winning streak. The Bucks in Bowles are currently 8-1 in the last two Decembers and 10-3 in December over the past three years.
During this four-game winning streak, Liam Cohen‘s offense is averaging 31 points per game. baker mayfield He overcame some of the turnover issues that were likely to occur as games continued, and he has a career-high 32 passing touchdowns this season. mike evans He’s on fire, too, as he’s coming off a 159-yard, two-touchdown performance, his second 100-yard game in the past three weeks. But as good as the passing game was; bucky irving and Ratchard White – Similar to the Buccaneer offensive line – the current team’s strength is the run game.
The quality of the offense in recent weeks has helped, but the Bucks’ defense has been stretched thin, which has also led to better football. During the winning streak, the team allowed just 15 points per game. Bowles’ defense shut out the Chargers in the second half of last week’s win, giving up the ball twice. Jamel Dean making fun of Justin Herbert Vi Jones Forced a fumble late in the game but recovered it. Kayvon Meriwether.
As for the Cowboys, they have won three of their last four games and are avoiding what could have been an embarrassingly bad performance. At the very least, they were pushed to the brink of being “in the hunt.” NFL.com Even if they beat the Bucks on Sunday night, their chances of making it to the postseason are less than 1%. Still, despite starting the season with three wins and seven losses. duck prescott This year, they are back to 6-8 heading into this matchup.
Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb – Photo by Cliff Welch/PR
backup quarterback cooper rush He did a great job for Dallas, especially these last four games in a row. He started in the win over Washington, throwing for 247 yards and two touchdowns, and had a 214-yard, three-touchdown performance in last week’s win over the Panthers. On the season, he threw for 1,405 yards and 10 touchdowns to three interceptions and has kept coach Mike McCarthy’s team afloat as of late.
It helps if there is a rush Cedee Lamb Throw it to. Despite Prescott’s injury and rushing and catching passes from backups, Lamb had 94 catches on 144 targets for 1,089 yards and six touchdowns this year. As the next closest receiver to him in catches and yards, the offense is running through him. jalen tolbert 40 catches for 462 yards. However, Tolbert did score five touchdowns. And it is also Rico Doodle The Cowboys have a tremendous amount of talent at running back this year, with 880 yards on 177 carries (5.0 average) and just ran for 149 yards last week against the Panthers.
Dallas’ defense has been playing better football lately, but it still ranks as one of the worst in the entire league. This team is not good at conceding goals, and this year they have conceded 27.1 points per game, tied for fourth worst in the league. Seven Cowboys have at least three sacks this season. Micah Parsons As expected, I was in the lead with 8.5. But this is a defense that has lost its playmaking linebacker Demarvion’s Overshow and top cornerback Trevon Diggs According to the season. These are tough blows for a defense that is already struggling.
Heading into Week 16, here are the Bucks and Cowboys standings.
Bucks offense: 4th in scoring offense (28.8 PPG), 3rd in total offense (388.3 yards per game), 4th in passing offense (244.0 yards per game), and T-4th in rushing offense (144.4 yards per game).
Cowboys offense: 19th in scoring offense (21.3 PPG), 17th in total offense (328.9 yards per game), 12th in passing offense (229.1 yards per game), and 27th in rushing offense (99.8 yards per game).
Bucks defense: 19th in scoring defense (23.3 points per game), 27th in total defense (356.9 yards per game), 30th in passing defense (247.7 yards per game) and 11th in rushing defense (109.2 yards per game). yard)
Cowboys defense: T-29th in scoring defense (27.1 points per game), 26th in total defense (356.0 yards per game), 21st in passing defense (219.9 yards per game), 29th in rushing defense (219.9 yards per game). (136.1 yards per)
As of Thursday morning, the Bucks were 3.5-point favorites with an over/under set at 48.5 (per hard rock bet).
Bucks at Cowboys game information
when: Sunday, December 22nd
where: AT&T Stadium (Arlington, Texas)
kick off: 8:20pm ET
tv set: NBC – Mike Tirico (play-by-play), Cris Collinsworth (analyst), Melissa Stark (reporter)
Bucks Radio: 98Rock – Gene Deckerhoff (play-by-play), Dave Moore (color), TJ Ribbs (reporter)
Spanish radio: 96.1 Caliente – Carlos Bojorquez (play-by-play), Martin Gramatica (analyst), Santiago Gramatica (reporter)
