Dallas Cowboys vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Five Keys to Victory

Key situations and matchups to watch for that will help determine the Week 15 showdown between the Dallas Cowboys and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Dallas Cowboys, and their fans, are hungry and anxious to leave the Week 14 loss to the New York Giants in the past.

That defeat, the second loss of the season and second loss to the Giants, was a tough one to swallow. The Dallas offense that has been so exciting and dominant for most of the season has really fallen off in recent weeks.

The Cowboys have only converted two third down attempts in the last two games, failing to pick up a first down on 22 of their last 24 third downs.

Dallas also turned the ball over three times last week. It’s hard to win football games when you don’t take care of the football.

Speaking of third downs and turnovers, a red-hot Tampa Bay Buccaneers squad is coming to Dallas-Fort Worth this week; the Bucs are riding a five game winning streak and are far from the ideal team for the Cowboys to try and have a bounce back game against.

What concerns me about this game? Well, Tampa Bay is currently ranked second in the NFL when it comes to allowing third down conversions. Going up against a stingy third down defensive team doesn’t bode well for a team that is struggling on epic proportions to convert third downs on offense.

Also, the Bucs have been consistently getting key turnovers in the past five weeks that have helped them seal the deal on winning football games.

With that being said, here are some of the keys to victory for the Dallas Cowboys in this matchup.

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