Tampa Bay Buccaneers 24, Dallas Cowboys 16
Well, this goes to show that sports can be unpredictable.
No matter what, it seems that I cannot quite make predictions for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. At least not with any measure of accuracy, anyway.
Really, they looked just awful to this point this season. Like they could not get anything going, or anything right.
Add to that going on the road to Big D, taking on that talented and potentially explosive Dallas offense, not to mention the sense of urgency which I thought that 'Boys would bring, being in a tight divisional race, and the choice seemed clear. Obviously, I figured that the Cowboys would win, and that the Bucs would likely lose.
As they always do.
So naturally, the Bucs came roaring to life and earned their first - and so far, only - win of the season.
Of course, this came at a time of some urgency for the Bucs as well. After all, the Falcons are really coming alive in the NFC South, and now locked in a two-way battle for supremacy in the NFC South, both at 2-2. Even the Saints, who have looked considerably less than spectacular to this point, are 1-3, and have looked capable of winning more than merely that one game which they actually earned that win in.
In other words, an 0-4 start for Tampa Bay could prove disastrous, even taking into consideration the generally weak nature of the NFC South in recent seasons. Simply put, if the Bucs kept losing, they would be out of it before October ends.
Credit to the Buccaneers for coming out with intensity, with a sense of purpose and urgency. Kudos especially to Tampa's defense, which contained the dangerous threat that the Cowboys offense usually poses for opponents.
How good was that Tampa Bay defense?
They held Dallas to just 50 yards total in rushing. That made the Cowboys offense relatively one-dimensional and top heavy. The passing game was not enough for them to earn this win.
Simply stated, the Bucs needed a win. To their credit, they went out and got one.
Dallas was actually winning at halftime, albeit narrowly, at 10-7.
But the Buccaneers came roaring to life in the third quarter. They simply took over the game with 17 unanswered points, entering the fourth quarter with a fairly comfortable 24-10 lead.
Granted, the 'Boys managed to score a touchdown to make it a relatively close game when Prescott found Pickens in the end zone for an 18-yard touchdown pass with less than six minutes remaining.
Ultimately, Tampa Bay held to preserve the win. Of course, it helped that they held onto the ball for over 39 minutes and committed no turnovers. Meanwhile, Dallas committed three costly turnovers in the game.
So with that, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers earn their first win of the season. They are no longer among the winless teams, improving to 1-4. That might look bad. Indeed, it is hardly a great record. But remember, the winner of the NFC South last year had a losing record. And so far, this feels like the kind of season where that can happen again. So as dismal as that 1-4 start may seem on the surface, you cannot count the Tampa Bay Bucs out of it.
Meanwhile, the Cowboys suffer yet another disappointing loss, their third of the season. That drops them to 2-3 on the year, as they potentially lose ground to both the Giants and the Eagles, depending on what those teams do this coming week.
My pick: Inaccurate
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