The Dallas Cowboys won their fourth game in five weeks, upsetting the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 26-24 on “Sunday Night Football.”
Cowboys cornerback Daron Bland forced a fumble on the first play of the Buccaneers’ final offensive possession, squashing a potential game-winning drive and sealing the victory for Dallas.
The loss was a costly one for Tampa Bay, which dropped from first place in the NFC South to outside the playoff bracket.
Bland’s forced fumble was a shocking play in a game filled with them. After Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield barely escaped a sack and flipped the ball to running back Rachaad White, Bland stripped White as he fought for more yards and then recovered the loose ball.
Mayfield completed 31 of 43 passes for 304 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in the loss.
Meanwhile, quarterback Cooper Rush played well for the Cowboys, throwing for 292 yards and a touchdown.
Dallas came out strong offensively, taking a 10-0 lead in the first quarter before eventually taking a 23-14 lead into halftime. After a field goal on their first possession of the second half, however, the Cowboys wouldn’t score again. But their defense came up with multiple big stops to prevent a Tampa Bay comeback — including two key turnovers.
In the middle of the fourth quarter, Mayfield appeared to find Jalen McMillan for a 46-yard touchdown on a deep pass, but as McMillan fell down to the field, Jourdan Lewis wrestled the ball away for an interception.
Two drives later, after the Bucs made it a two-point game, Bland ended the game with his forced fumble.
Dallas competed admirably despite having been eliminated from playoff contention before the game. The Cowboys improved to 7-8. They will play the Philadelphia Eagles next week.
Tampa Bay, meanwhile, has had a roller-coaster season. The Buccaneers started 4-2, then lost four games, then won four straight before Sunday’s loss, which dropped them to 8-7. The Bucs now have the same record as the division-leading Atlanta Falcons but trail them in the standings after being swept in their two-game season series.
Tampa Bay will play the Carolina Panthers in Week 17.
Big D in Dallas ends 26-24 Cowboys
Daron Bland just made the play of the night in Dallas. With Tampa trying to drive the length of the field to win the game with less than 2 minutes remaining, Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield eluded multiple defenders to avoid a sack and keep the play alive by throwing a shuttle pass to his running back, Rachaad White.
But as White was falling to the turf, Bland ripped the ball away for a turnover, and the Cowboys ran out the clock for the win. They will improve to 7-8, while Tampa will fall to 8-6.
The Bucs are now second in the standings to Atlanta in the NFC South, and their road to the playoffs just got harder.
Tampa keeps comeback hopes alive!
Don’t count out the Buccaneers just yet. They now trail Dallas just 26-24 with 2:36 remaining after their 87-yard touchdown drive took just 2:07 off the clock. It ended with Baker Mayfield finding a wide open Ryan Miller for a 13-yard pass. Mayfield had to reach just to get the ball over the outstretched arm of a Cowboys defender.Andrew Greif
CeeDee Lamb made the 88 jersey proud tonight
Cowboys receiver CeeDee Lamb wears the No. 88 jersey made famous by Michael Irvin, and tonight Lamb joined Irvin in another exclusive club.
With his 100 receiving yards tonight, Lamb posted his fourth consecutive 1,000-yard season, tying Irvin for the most consecutive 1,000-yard seasons in Dallas history.
Did Dallas just seal a victory?
Baker Mayfield was going for the home-run touchdown pass to Jalen McMillan, but instead Jourdan Lewis ripped the ball away while in coverage, as McMillan was tumbling into the end zone. Incredible awareness by Lewis, and with Dallas now getting the ball back with six minutes to play in regulation, Dallas has a chance to run out the clock with a lengthy drive.
Bucs need to score but opt to punt
Trailing by nine points with 9:10 left in the fourth quarter, Tampa was pinned too deep inside its own half of the field to go for a long fourth-down try and punted instead. Baker Mayfield was seen entering the injury tent to be looked at.
Dallas 26, Tampa 17
That was an adventurous 11-play, 6-minute drive for Tampa, full of Baker Mayfield scrambles to varying levels of success, but it ends with points. Chase McLaughlin’s 45-yard field goal pulls the Bucs within nine points with 31 seconds left in the third quarter.
Brandon Aubrey has missed only twice from 50-plus yards this season
Cowboys kicker Brandon Aubrey remains hilariously good at converting super-long field goals.
Aubrey is 3 for 3 on kicks from over 50 tonight, hitting kicks of 53, 58 and 58 yards.
Entering tonight, Aubrey was 11 of 13 on kicks from over 50 yards this season. One of those misses was a 70-yard attempt against the Panthers last week — the kind of kick you only really try when you have Brandon Aubrey.
Including tonight, Aubrey is now 24 of 26 on kicks over 50 yards in his career — a 92.3% conversion rate. Aubrey converts 50-yarders at a higher percentage than the league’s all-time most accurate kicker (Justin Tucker) converts all field goals (89.1%).
Aubrey’s only miss from over 50 but under 70 came earlier this season, when he shockingly missed a 51-yarder against the Giants.
Brandon Aubrey makes fourth field goal
Aubrey the automatic. The Cowboys’ kicker is 4-for-4 after a 53-yarder to extend the Dallas lead to 26-14 with 6:33 to go in the third quarter. Aubrey is now 3-for-3 beyond 50 yards tonight.
Buccaneers avoid a costly mistake
Tampa will punt with 9:25 to play in the third quarter to end a promising drive that seemed destined to end in points. But the Buccaneers avoided a turnover when Dallas couldn’t recover a wild fumble in bounds. Instead of starting a drive inside Tampa’s half of the field, the Cowboys didn’t have a short field.
Halftime: Dallas 23, Buccaneers 14
Brandon Aubrey hits his third field goal of the first half by knocking in a 58-yarder as time expires to put the Cowboys ahead 23-14 at the break. That was a very convincing half from a team that should theoretically have little to play for after being eliminated from the postseason earlier today. Aubrey has now made two kicks of 58 yards, plus a 49-yarder.
The Buccaneers will need more of two-minute Baker Mayfield
Before the Buccaneers’ final drive of the first half, Baker Mayfield had completed 9 of 13 passes for only 75 yards. That was a pretty pedestrian effort from a quarterback who entered the game fifth in the NFL in passing yards per game.
On Tampa Bay’s final drive, however, Mayfield completed 5 of 6 passes for 67 yards, nearly matching his total from all four previous possessions.
With Cooper Rush and the Cowboys playing well on offense so far, the Bucs will need more of the Mayfield who put together a flawless two-minute drive before halftime.
In addition to racking up the yards this season, Mayfield entered the game third in passing touchdowns, third in completion percentage and second in success rate.
Tampa Bay touchdown
The Buccaneers have life. Taking the ball over with 1:45 to play before halftime, they went 71 yards in seven plays before scoring on an 11-yard touchdown pass from Baker Mayfield to Jalen McMillan. It was a superb play by Mayfield to avoid sacks in a collapsing pocket. It’s Dallas 20, Tampa 14 with 48 seconds before halftime.
Cowboys score again!
Running back Ezekiel Elliott punches in a touchdown on a 1-yard dive to punctuate a critical scoring drive for Dallas, which now leads 20-7 with 1:45 to go before halftime. The drive belonged to CeeDee Lamb, who produced the catch of the first half with his adjustment while the ball was in the air en route to a 52-yard reception that put the Cowboys in scoring position.
He immediately came off the field looking shaken up, potentially favoring the right shoulder he has previously hurt. But shortly after, Lamb re-entered the game and escaped two tacklers before rolling into the end zone for an apparent touchdown. After a review, his knee was marked short of the goal line. That’s when Dallas handed off to Elliott.
Dallas gets to the QB, as usual
Tampa’s latest drive ends with 9:15 to go before halftime after Baker Mayfield was sacked on third-and-5. It was the Cowboys’ 43rd sack this season, fifth-most in the NFL.
Cowboys 13, Buccaneers 7
Cooper Rush’s accurate streak to start the game has ended after failed targets to star wideout CeeDee Lamb, but the Cowboys did enough to get into position for a 49-yard field goal by Brandon Aubrey.
Tampa Bay answers!
Tampa running back Bucky Irving scores on a short toss to pull the Buccaneers within 10-7 with 11:30 to play in the second quarter. That is the seventh rushing touchdown of Irving’s rookie season.
It’s all Cowboys after one quarter
The Cowboys lead 10-0 after the opening quarter in Dallas. Was that was you were expecting? It’s likely it wasn’t, given the Bucs are playing for their playoff lives, while the Cowboys have been eliminated. And yet, the Bucs are 1-3 on third down, and 0-1 on fourth down, while the Cowboys have been better, at 3-5 on third downs.
Cooper Rush is finding his groove
After throwing for only one touchdown in his first two starts, Cowboys quarterback Cooper Rush has really found his footing in the last month.
In his previous four starts before tonight, Rush threw eight touchdowns compared to only one interception. Dallas is 3-1 in those games, albeit with some wins over lesser opponents. (But one nice upset against the Commanders!)
So far tonight, Rush has picked up where he left off last week, when he threw for three scores against the Panthers.
After one quarter, Rush has thrown for 70 yards and a touchdown against the Bucs, completing 9 of his 10 passes.
Touchdown, Dallas
Dallas is one of the NFL’s worst teams at scoring touchdowns once in the red zone, but it wasn’t a problem on its second drive of the night. Jalen Tolbert caught a 10-yard pass from Cooper Rush to extend the Cowboys’ lead to 10-0 with 2:49 left in the first quarter.
Drop stops Bucs drive
On its opening drive of the game Tampa went for fourth down, needing three yards, at midfield, but receiver Sterling Shepard dropped an open pass, leading to a turnover on downs. The Cowboys will take over at their own 48-yard line.
Cowboys 3, Buccaneers 0
Brandon Aubrey nails a field goal from 58 yards to open the scoring for Dallas after the Cowboys’ opening drive went 30 yards. Cooper Rush has started 6-for-6 passing.
Underway in Dallas
The Cowboys open the game with the ball. They have no chance to make the playoffs but can play spoiler with Tampa’s hopes of winning the NFC South. But to do that, quarterback Cooper Rush — filling in for the injured Dak Prescott since Week 8 — must play like he has in the last month, with eight combined touchdown passes.
Todd Bowles talks CeeDee Lamb
The Bucs' coach knows he can't win without containing Dallas' star receiver.
Brandon Aubrey warmups
The Cowboys' star kicker ahead of tonight's big game.
Bucs trying to hold off Atlanta
The race for the NFC South division championship and the postseason berth that comes with winning a division title will be close. Earlier today, Atlanta and new starting quarterback Michael Penix Jr. beat the Giants to improve to 8-7. As we broke down below, the Falcons hold the tiebreaker on the Buccaneers (8-6 entering ‘Sunday Night Football’), meaning Atlanta would get the edge if it finishes tied with the Buccaneers at season’s end. Tonight, Atlanta just became big fans of Dallas.
Cowboys already eliminated from postseason
Washington’s victory against Philadelphia earlier Sunday mathematically eliminated Dallas from making the postseason. According to Cowboys beat reporter Todd Archer, this is the earliest that Dallas has been eliminated from playoff contention in seven years.
Big-game Bucky
Tampa Bay has produced just eight 1,000-yard rushers in franchise history. This season, Bucky Irving is on pace to join that small club in only his first NFL season. Irving, who played at Oregon, currently has 852 yards with three games remaining. If Irving crosses the 1,000-yard threshold, he would be the youngest to do it in Buccaneers history.
Can Dallas score enough to keep up?
Since starting Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott was lost for the season with a hamstring injury in Week 9, Dallas has ranked next-to-last in the league in expected points added per play, an advanced statistic that attempts to analyze a team’s efficiency. It also ranks fourth-worst in expected points added per dropback, and sixth-worse when rushing the ball.
The Cowboys’ challenge will be keeping up with Tampa, whose overall EPA per play ranks fourth-best during their current four-game winning streak.
No place like home?
Dallas is 1-7 at AT&T Stadium since the end of the 2023 regular season and most losses were not close, with double-digit deficits in six of the seven losses. While that would be a black eye for any franchise, the contrast is especially stark for the Cowboys given that before that 1-7 stretch, they had won 16 consecutive home games, their longest home winning streak since 1982.
The stakes on 'Sunday Night Football'
At 8-6, Tampa is currently projected as a No. 3 seed in the NFC and would host Green Bay in a first-round game. But the Buccaneers are also far from assured of clinching their playoff berth; in the NFC South, they sit just one game ahead of the 7-7 Falcons, who would hold a tiebreaker as Atlanta swept the Bucs this season. Tampa is guaranteed to win the division and make the playoffs if it wins its last three games — and all three of those opponents have losing records — but one slip-up could cost them.
For Dallas, there is also uncertainty about what lies ahead. Coach Mike McCarthy is 48-33 overall and 1-3 in the playoffs with two NFC East titles in five seasons with the Cowboys but his contract runs out after this season. Cowboys players including star defender Micah Parsons have publicly vouched for McCarthy to return in 2025
Stephen Jones, the Cowboys’ executive vice president of personnel, said after league meetings last week that McCarthy had done an “outstanding” job of keeping Dallas in the playoff picture, even if slim, via their mini-turnaround of the past month. Jones said a decision on McCarthy’s future would take a wider view.
“When you’re owning/managing a football team, you look at everything. It would be irresponsible not to,” Jones said about considering the team’s injuries in an evaluation of McCarthy’s job performance. “I know our fans and opponents don’t look at everything but we do.”
Streaky season in Tampa
It’s been either boom-or-bust this season in Tampa. The Buccaneers were a team every opponent wanted to play in October. But since, they’ve been on a tear. Since losing four straight games to drop to 4-6, the Bucs have won four consecutive games, and tonight can extend that to five consecutive victories for the first time since 2016. This is Tampa’s last road game of the regular season.
Despite losing starting quarterback Dak Prescott to a hamstring injury in November, the Cowboys also enter tonight on something close to a turnaround. Since falling to 3-7, the Cowboys have won three of their last four games to enter tonight’s game at 6-8.