The Tampa Bay Buccaneers play the Dallas Cowboys at 8:30 PM ET, Sunday Dec. 19, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas and it should be one of the critical games that decides the pecking order in the NFC.
The Cowboys have the best record in the conference at 11-2 and missed a chance to clinch a first round bye with a win over the New York Giants on Sunday. The Giants could still win the NFC East.
The Buccaneers are still in the conversation to win the NFC South. They are tied with the Atlanta Falcons for first place with both teams at 8-5. A bye week is also in play because they remain one game behind the Detroit Lions who are 9-4.
The Buccaneers are on a season-long five-game winning streak after a 16-11 triumph over the New Orleans Saints at home. The Cowboys had won 11 straight games prior to losing on Sunday. Their only two losses are to the Giants.
Here are the keys to the Buccaneers winning on the road against the NFC’s best team.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Week 15 Keys to Victory
Doug Martin Takes Flight
It’s been a tough year for Doug Martin, who’s averaging a career-low three yards per carry in his fifth season in the NFL. Martin missed eight games this season due to a hamstring injury and he’s yet to have a game with 100 rushing yards. The high in a game this season is 87 yards, which surprisingly came against the Seattle Seahawks on November 27th in the Bucs’ 14-5 win. Martin looks physically ready to take off because he ran with a bounce in his step against the Saints. He made some runs like he did last year, which translated to 1,402 rushing yards for the second 1,000+ rushing yard season of his career. With two touchdowns in two straight games, Martin looks ready for a breakout game.
Keep the Cowboys Pass Happy
This is easier than it sounds. The Cowboys tend to fall in love with the abundance and quality of weapons they have on the perimeter instead of the best weapon they have in running back in Ezekiel Elliott. Elliott had a great game against the Giants with 24 carries and 107 rushing yards. It could have been even better but the Cowboys threw the ball 37 times. Quarterback Dak Prescott also looked rattled against the Giants’ defense. The Buccaneers are playing with a similar confidence. Prescott is mobile, but he prefers to throw the ball. The threat of him running isn’t as high as it is for other quarterbacks. The Buccaneers’ defense has piled up 14 interceptions, which is tied for third in the NFL. Four players have at least two interceptions including Brent Grimes with three and nine different players have an interception.
Pressure Dak Prescott Frequently
The Cowboys’ all-world offensive line has started to show a little vulnerability particularly in protecting Prescott. The Giants without Jason Pierre-Paul supplied pressure on Prescott and wound up with three sacks. The Buccaneers’ defensive line is playing as well as it has all year. Gerald McCoy has 6.5 sacks while Noah Spence and Robert Ayers each have 5.5 sacks. They can also rotate with William Gholston, Clinton McDonald and Akeem Spence who bring the speed of pass rushers up the middle.
Roberto Aguayo Converts a 50-yard Field Goal
Aguayo seems pretty confident now compared to where he was in the preseason. He hasn’t missed an extra point in his last six games, on which he is 12 of 12 and he’s missed two field goals in the last five games. The only thing Aguayo has yet to do this season is make a kick from 50 yards or longer. He’s had only one attempt also. The Buccaneers and the Cowboys are also two teams that have averaged 19 points and 18 points respectively over their last three games. The chances are high that there will be a need for a long distance field goal.
Pick: Dallas Cowboys 27 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers 26
