5 reasons Cowboys will beat the Buccaneers in Week 1

1. No one on Tampa Bay can cover CeeDee Lamb

Trading Amari Cooper for practically nothing and losing Cedrick Wilson in the same offseason was less than ideal. Even worse is having Michael Gallup on the sideline and James Washington‚— the only experienced replacement at wideout — on IR.

It’s no secret right now that Dallas is hurting at wide receiver. There is some good news though since they do have someone capable of taking over a game by himself in CeeDee Lamb.

In his first two seasons, Lamb has 153 receptions for 2,037 yards with 11 touchdowns. He showed a lot of growth in his sophomore campaign and knows it’s time for him to take his game to the next level. He should be able to start out on the right foot as well since the Bucs have no one on their roster who can cover him.

Tampa Bay has decent corners with Jamel Dean and Carlton Davis, but they’re more physical than agile and that plays into Lamb’s hands. He’s a great route runner with excellent deep speed. He finished the season ranked eighth overall at the position by PFF whereas the starting corners for the Bucs were slightly lower as they came in the 20s. He’s also incredibly versatile and can move into the slot where he would have an even greater advantage.

Against this same team in 2021, Lamb had seven receptions for 104 yards with a touchdown. The numbers could have been even better since he had 15 targets come his way, but many of those were just off — which is understandable given the fact that he spent the majority of his rookie campaign working with Andy Dalton and not Prescott.

Now that they have a full season together, there’s no reason to bet against Lamb becoming one of the best in the game. And that’s one of the main reasons Dallas can secure a win this weekend.