Bucs vs. Cowboys: Most Disappointing Players From Wild Card Round

Brady just wasn’t himself this game. After driving the ball down to the 4-yard line early in the second quarter, he was picked off by Jayron Kearse. The veteran quarterback was under pressure and wasn’t able to step into the ball to throw it out of the end zone. 

Then, with a chance to put points on the board after receiving the ball coming out of halftime, Brady missed Gage bad on a throw that would’ve picked up positive yards.

The lack of any sort of connection between Brady and Evans continued to torment a stagnant Bucs offense. He did make a beautiful throw to Julio Jones, who came down with a tough grab in the end zone at the end of the third quarter. Brady was under constant duress all night and missed several open receivers as a result.

Donovan Smith

Smith struggled with Micah Parsons all night long, consistently letting him in the backfield. On the first play of the game, it appeared the Bucs offensive tackle was supposed to wall off Parsons, but failed to do so. The play resulted in a three-yard loss. On the same drive, he picked up a holding call, though it was declined. Leftwich gave Smith no help all game, but the veteran left tackle needs to play better regardless.

Pass Protection

Whelp, so much for the return of center Ryan Jensen providing a boost. Brady was under pressure from the moment the game started and it didn’t relent all evening. Nearly every starting offensive lineman was exploited at some point. Brady was sacked twice in the game, but had bodies coming at him every which way.

K.J. Britt

After a huge-third down stop by rookie Logan Hall, the Cowboys decided to go for it on fourth down at the 1-yard line. Britt bit on a perfectly executed fake handoff keeper by Prescott, who was able to walk in for an easy touchdown.

Devin White

In a game where the Bucs needed their defensive captain to be a playmaker for them, White was nowhere to be found, expect out of position. On several plays, the fourth-year linebacker had massive lapses in coverage, allowing gains of 18 and 26 yards.  White missed several tackles and wasn’t a factor in the defense’s pass rush. He finished fifth on the team in tackles with five.

Mike Edwards

Edwards was in coverage on Dalton Schultz’s 22-yard touchdown reception to put the Cowboys up 6-0 in the first quarter. Edwards got turned around on the route, allowing Schultz to get behind him for the open score. A coverage breakdown between Lavonte David and himself lead to a 20-yard reception by Schultz late in the second quarter. Edwards was also in coverage on Schultz’s second touchdown on the night, slipping on the play.

Sean Murphy-Bunting

The Bucs started Murphy-Bunting over the ailing Jamel Dean, and it didn’t go well for the fourth-year cornerback. Prescott picked on him any chance he got. He gave up multiple passes of ten or more yards, including a 26-yard completion to CeeDee Lamb early in the second half. Murphy-Bunting was again on the wrong side of a huge play in the fourth quarter. He let Michael Gallup separate from him to reel in a 13-yard catch that picked up a first down on 3rd & 6.

Pass Defense

The Bucs were atrocious in coverage in the first half. On the opening two drives, the team effectively shut down Prescott. After that, numerous communication breakdowns in coverage led to three straight scoring drives. Prescott finished with 189 yards and two touchdowns in the first half, throwing 15 completions on 20 passes.

The Dak Prescott Show continued in the second half. More miscommunication saw the Cowboys bring the lead to 24-0 early in the third quarter. Another error in coverage saw Dallas extend their lead to 31-6 after Lamb walked into the endzone untouched on an 18-yard grab. On the night, Prescott finished with a 143.3 passer rating, going 25-33 for 305 yards and four touchdown passes and one on the ground. 

Play Calling

Screens and early-down runs filled most of the first quarter, leading to ineffectiveness moving the ball. The Bucs started with two three-and-outs. They finally moved the ball a bit on their third drive, with gains though the air and on the ground by Rachaad White and Chris Godwin. It didn’t matter, ultimately, as their same predictable offense was thwarted on all of their second quarter possessions as well. A Brady interception in the red zone inside the 5-yard line didn’t help either.

The play calling woes continued to plague the Bucs in the second half. Unable to establish any kind of rhythm on offense, Leftwich stuck with the same vanilla playcaling that has been an issue all season long. The only time the Bucs were really able to successfully move the ball is when Brady took over in hurry-up offense.

Carlton Davis

Davis’ most egregious mistake was being out of position on the Cowboys’ fourth touchdown of the game. Walking a tightrope along the back of the endzone, Michael Gallup reeled in a two-yard touchdown to put Dallas up 24-0 in the third quarter. Davis also had a missed tackle on Lamb just before the half that would’ve been a tackle for loss. The play instead went for a four-yard gain.

Davis allowed his second touchdown of the game in the fourth quarter on a breakdown in coverage. Supposed to have Lamb in man coverage on the play, Davis got caught looking in the backfield, allowing Prescott to find the receiver for a wide-open 18-yard touchdown. The drive started with Davis getting blocked into the dirt by Schultz on a play that went for 14 yards as well.

Pass Rush

Outside of Vea’s first-quarter sack, the Bucs’ pass rush was non-existent against the Cowboys. Joe Tryon-Shoyinka rarely got real pressure on Prescott while slipping out of contain too often. Anthony Nelson was seldom seen in the backfield and the interior pressure dropped off early. Tryon- Shoyinka fell for a play-action fake leading to a blown coverage that allowed Jake Ferguson to make an easy 35-yard catch-and-run in the first half, while Akiem Hicks had a roughing the passer penalty that aided the Cowboys on their way to the first points of the game.