The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are battling to stay atop their division. The Dallas Cowboys are virtually eliminated from the playoffs (though they do have an insane 0.1% chance of making it if things break EXACTLY right). Either way, Micah Parsons and most players will tell you they don’t care about playoff odds - they show up to do their job on Sunday. 

So this one should end up being a fun game on Sunday night football. The spread if close enough considering the circumstances and the 48.5 point game total is the highest on the slate. Let’s did into some numbers and narratives to come up with our best bet in as part of our Buccaneers vs. Cowboys predictions for Week 16 Sunday Night Football. 

Even if you just want to see the Buccaneers vs. Cowboys odds and have Buccaneers vs. Cowboys picks of your own, don’t forget to scroll down at the end to see how you can scoop up a $1,500 BetMGM Sportsbook sign-up bonus! 

 

 

 

Buccaneers vs. Cowboys Predictions For NFL Week 16, Sunday Night Football 

They aren’t in the same division but these two teams have still played in each of the last three calendar years of 2023, 2022, and 2021. That’s what happens with teams that generally operate towards the top of their division - or meet in the playoffs like they did in the 2023 playoffs. The Cowboys won that one but the Buccaneers won their previous two matchups.

The Cowboys have actually won three of their last four against the Panthers, the Giants, and Commanders. The game they lost was to the Bengals. The Buccaneers were reeling at one point, losing four straight to the Ravens, Calfons, Chiefs, and 49ers. But they have since won their last four against the Giants, Panthers, Raiders, and Chargers. That allowed them to reclaim the lead in the NFC South. 

 

 

 

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Let Baker Mayfield Bake

The Buccaneers have dealt with a number of injuries to wide receivers. Chris Godwin is done for the season. Cade Otton is doubtful for this week. Mike Evans and Jalen McMillan each missed time but are back to full strength for this game. Mike Evans is chasing his 11th straight 1,000 yard receiving season. A 159 yard performance last week put a huge dent in that number but he still had 251 yards to go. 

On defense, Vita Vea and the gang have been stout against the run. But the Buccaneers have struggled a bit against the pass. They rank 22nd in DVOA against the pass per FTN Fantasy despite being top 10 against the run. 

 

 

 

Dallas Cowboys: All On Cooper Rush

We mentioned that the Buccaneers are essentially a “pass funnel” defense. That’s going to put a lot of pressure on Cooper Rush, who is filling in for the injured Dak Prescott. CeeDee Lamb certainly makes that task easier and he’ll have Brandon Cooks and Jake Ferguson to assist with that. 

The Cowboys defense was expected to be a top unit this year. But injuries and busts have been problematic all year long. Daron Bland missed a number of games and now fellow cornerback Trevon Diggs is set to miss. The run defense has struggled up the middle as guys like Mazi Smith and Linval Joseph have not gotten the job done.  

 

 

 

Buccaneers vs. Cowboys Odds, Spreads, Total & Betting Lines

As promised, the latest Buccaneers vs. Cowboys odds can be found below courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook:

 

 

 

Buccaneers vs. Cowboys Best Bet: Jake Ferguson Over 3.5 Receptions  (-165 at BetMGM Sportsbook)

 

The juice is steep on this one, we get that. But there isn’t really a huge market for alternate reception lines. And this is the best line we are seeing to bet that Jake Ferguson gets peppered with targets. And that’s the kind of game we think this one is.

The Cowboys will have to throw because of how good the Buccaneers run defense is. And the Buccaneers pass defense has been especially bad against the tight end where they rank bottom five in nearly every category. We don’t like betting anytime touchdowns because of how flukey they can be. And we don’t like better the over on yardage for Jake Ferguson because he lacks high end athleticism. He runs a ~4.8 forty and has never broken a play off longer than 40 yards. The books clearly don’t want us to be the over on receptions but that is exactly what we are doing to do at 3.5. And we’d do the same at 4.5 or 5.5 with less juice if they weren’t too scared to offer it. 

 

 

 

Buccaneers vs. Cowboys Injury Report & Latest News

Finally, let’s take a quick look at the projected starting lineups for both teams heading into tonight’s matchup:

TB Buccaneers

DAL Cowboys

 

 

 

How To Bet On Buccaneers vs. Cowboys At BetMGM Sportsbook & Claim Your $1,500 Bonus With Promo Code ALARM

Now that you’re armed with our Buccaneers vs. Cowboys predictions, let’s take you through the aforementioned $1,500 BetMGM sign up bonus. 

You’ll just need the BetMGM promo code ALARM when creating a new account, but our links and banners should have it filled in for you.