Buccaneers must capitalize on glaring Cowboys weakness
By Asher Fair
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers must capitalize on a key weakness of the Dallas Cowboys when the two teams meet in Monday night’s Wild Card game.
Despite finishing the regular season with a losing record, the NFC South champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers are set to host a Wild Card game this weekend against the Dallas Cowboys. The game between the NFC’s No. 4 and No. 5 seeds is set to wrap up the opening round of the postseason on Monday night.
The two teams met once in the regular season, with that battle taking place at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas back in Week 1. The Buccaneers won 19-3, giving quarterback Tom Brady a 7-0 all-time record against the Cowboys in his 23-year NFL career.
But this Monday night’s matchup is set to take place at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, where the Cowboys may be at a significant disadvantage.
Trending. 4 possible Buccaneers Divisional Round opponents. light
Dallas finished the regular season 12-5, but 11 of their 12 wins came on turf. In fact, their only loss on a turf field came in that Week 1 game against Tampa Bay.
Aside from going 8-1 at home, they also won on turf against the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium, the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium, and the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium.
On grass surfaces, however, the Cowboys went just 1-4, which could spell trouble against the Buccaneers to open up the postseason.
They were defeated by the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field, the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field, the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field, and the Washington Commanders at FedEx Field. Their lone win on grass came in Week 17 against the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium.
Perhaps worth noting is the fact that the Titans were starting a quarterback who wasn’t on the roster until less than a week before Christmas, and they ended the season on a seven-game losing streak after starting 7-3.
As for the Buccaneers, they finished the regular season 6-8 on grass, but they were significantly better at home (5-4) than they were on the road (1-4). That 6-8 record is also far more representative of their season as a whole than the Cowboys’ 1-4 mark, which could make for an interesting Monday night matchup.
Want your voice heard? Join the The Pewter Plank team!