5 players the Cowboys need to play well to beat Buccaneers

The Cowboys need to play close to a perfect game if they want to knock off the Buccaneers in Week 1. These five Dallas players are under the most pressure. 

The NFL schedule makers haven’t done Dallas any favor by matching them up against the Buccaneers in Week 1. The Cowboys will need to play a nearly flawless game if they want to knock off the defending Super Bowl champions. That’s a big challenge for head coach Mike McCarthy and his staff heading into their season opener.

The good news for Dallas is that they will have quarterback Dak Prescott back at the controls of their offense. The team’s 2020 campaign went off the rails without their star signal caller. His return to the field will do wonders for the Cowboys’ offense.

There is significant pressure on the team’s defense as well. Shutting down Tom Brady and company is a significant challenge for a unit that’s light on talent to handle. If Dallas wants to pull off the upset they need the following five players to have great games.

5. Tyler Biadasz

Vita Vea can be a one-man wrecking crew for the Buccaneers’ defensive line if he is permitted to control the middle of the line of scrimmage. It’s up to Biadasz to neutralize Vea before he has a chance to wreck Dallas’ offensive game plan.

Biadasz isn’t going to knock Vea backward, so the key is for him to avoid getting beaten cleanly. The Cowboys will want to establish their ground game early in the game which means Ezekiel Elliott has to be given a chance to hit the line of scrimmage with some forward momentum.

Biadasz will also be an integral part of Dallas’ efforts to keep Prescott up right. Vea can be a menacing pass rusher and the Cowboys need to keep him away from their quarterback if they want to achieve offensive consistency in Week 1.