The Buccaneers did something Thursday night that they had struggled to do through the first month of the season: control the game on their terms. Tampa Bay held the football for 39:21 in its 24-16 win over Dallas, leaving the Cowboys with just 20:39 of possession and keeping Dak Prescott and the Dallas offense on the sideline for long stretches.
The tone was established on Tampa Bay’s first possession. After Dallas opened the game with a touchdown, the Bucs answered with a 15-play, 73-yard drive that lasted 10:58 and ended with Jalon Daniels finding Bucky Irving for a five-yard touchdown. Instead of quickly handing the ball back to Prescott, Tampa Bay essentially consumed the rest of the opening quarter, tied the game, and gave its defense a lengthy
break.
The Buccaneers controlled the ball for 8:38 in the first quarter, 10:51 in the second, 10:24 in the third, and another 9:28 in the fourth. Dallas never possessed the football for more than 6:22 in any quarter, and the Cowboys had it for only 4:09 in the second quarter and 4:36 in the third. By the time Dallas needed to mount a fourth-quarter comeback, Tampa Bay had already dictated the pace of the game for most of the night.
The running game played a major role in controlling the tempo of the game. Tampa Bay ran the ball 39 times for 241 yards, led by Bucky Irving’s 165 yards on 21 carries. The Buccaneers consistently stayed ahead of the chains, finished with 24 first downs, and converted 7 of their 13 third-down opportunities, allowing Daniels and the offense to extend possessions rather than repeatedly putting the defense back on the field after short series.
Tampa Bay ultimately ran 65 offensive plays compared with 55 for Dallas, but the difference in possession was even more significant than the 10-play gap suggests. The Bucs were patient, kept the clock moving, and forced the Cowboys to operate with far fewer opportunities than they would have liked. Dallas finished with only 13 rushing attempts, in part because Tampa Bay’s ability to sustain drives eventually forced the Cowboys to lean heavily on Prescott while playing from behind.
The Buccaneers still had some possessions that stalled and left opportunities on the field, but the overall approach gave them something they had not consistently shown this season: control. Tampa Bay was not simply reacting to what Dallas did. The Bucs established the tempo, protected their defense, and made the Cowboys play at their pace on their home field.
For a team that entered Thursday night without a win, that may have been one of the most encouraging parts of the entire performance. Tampa Bay did not need a frantic fourth-quarter comeback or a late miracle to survive. The Buccaneers possessed the football for more than 65% of the game, leaned on their running attack, and made Dallas spend most of the night waiting for another opportunity.
This article originally appeared on Bucs Wire: Buccaneers dominate time of possession in win over Cowboys
