1st Quarter

The Dallas Cowboys won the toss, the first thing they won on the day what with them having been eliminated from playoff contention, and elected to receive. Cooper Rush was up.

That first drive was a methodical one as Cooper Rush completed all 6 passes that he attempted; however, the Cowboys kept things in front of them and were hardly taking shots down the field. Ultimately things stalled just a little bit and they had to settle for a 58-yard field goal attempt which Brandon Aubrey converted with (shocker) relative ease.

When Tampa Bay took over they began to move with relative ease themselves until things got a bit tough around midfield. Ultimately the Buccaneers went for it on fourth and short and even though Baker Mayfield found a wide open receiver, Sterling Shepard dropped it to turn the ball over to the Cowboys.

The Cowboys went straight to work on their next drive. Cooper Rush found Brandin Cooks for a huge gain that put them in position to threaten for a touchdown this time around. Soon enough, Cooper Rush found Jalen Tolbert in the back of the endzone with one of the prettiest throw and catches you will ever see.

Tampa’s next possession seemed to reach go-for-it territory on fourth and short as well, but this time the Bucs chose to punt it away. Dallas’ offense took the field for the third time in the game and with a 10-0 lead at their back.

The quarter ended with Dallas facing 3rd and 8 from their own 22.