Tonight either the Dallas Cowboys or the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will win their final game of the season.
Be careful what you wish for.
Yes, the Cowboys will be wearing blue.
Ok, cynical snark aside, this matchup is fascinating, and this could play out in a lot of different ways. But it will come down to this. If Tampa Bay keeps Brady vertical, the Bucs will win. If Dallas plants him horizontally often enough, the Cowboys will advance.
Pretty basic, but problematic for both teams. The Bucs’ offensive line is young and shaky. But the Cowboys’ vaunted pass rush has faded badly in recent weeks.
Both teams are healthier than they have been in a while. No excuses. The Bucs are running the ball and stopping the run better than they were through the first three months of the season. Name me one thing in any of the three phases of the game in which the Cowboys are peaking.
The Cowboys’ run defense remains porous and vulnerable. This is key, Cowboy fans. While you’re rightly worrying about 45-year-old Tom Brady, you better address and account for another old man. If Leonard Fournette rushes for 85 yards, you lose.
It’s not just the yards. If Fournette can consistently keep Brady out of third and eight, it will greatly aid the Bucs’ inconsistent pass protection, and open up the play-action passing game, especially on deep, diagonal crossing routes. Mike Evans, in particular, could get a little crazy.
For Tampa Bay, it’s all about keeping Brady upright. Being able to run the ball is a big part of that.
Dallas is of course fully capable of winning. But postseason games are about how teams are playing NOW.
Plus, the home field matters in this case. Playing on grass matters in this case.
Sure, my heart hopes otherwise. But the Radically Rational pick here is Bucs 28, Cowboys 24. (Note: For whatever it’s worth, I’m 5-0 in my Wild Card picks, including taking the Giants over the Vikes and the Jags over the Chargers.)
But here’s another rational point. Whichever team wins tonight will post its final victory of the season. Either the Cowboys or the Bucs will leave Santa Clara next Sunday with a bad case of the Bay Area Blues.
We recently observed the 50th anniversary of the Immaculate Reception. What are we gonna call last night’s iconic play in Cincinnati? Because folks will still be talking about that a half-century from now. The Gift? The Boneheaded Bobble? 98 and Out the Gate? “Over the top” was not the way to go.
And, hey, Mike McDaniel, a delay of game penalty in that situation? Seriously? I felt badly for Skylar Thompson. That kid almost pulled it off.
Maybe you thought or still think that what Daniel Jones did yesterday in Minneapolis was a fluke. That’s not what I think I saw. What I think I saw is a very talented quarterback who has persevered and is now taking names. “Elite”? Certainly yesterday. The Giants will be a big problem for Philly. And the Giants will be a big problem for everybody next year.
I had to read the online headline twice just to process it. “Alabama basketball player charged with capital murder.” A 23-year-old woman is gone, shot dead in a car by two strangers following what appears to have started as a minor traffic altercation early Sunday in Tuscaloosa.
This insanity was not part of Dr. King’s Dream. Our commitment to non-violence must be unequivocal. Non-violence is strength.
Peace.