Cowboys studs and duds: Dak Prescott delivers in Wild Card win

Stud: Dak Prescott, Quarterback

The first two drives were ugly. Dak Prescott and the Cowboys had back-to-back three-and-outs as they were struggling with the crowd noise and nerves seemed to be an issue.

Then on their third series, Prescott got rolling. He had a 15-yard pass to Michael Gallup and then a three-yarder to Noah Brown — which had 15 added for a roughing penalty. He capped that drive off with a touchdown pass to Dalton Schultz, giving them a 6-0 lead.

Prescott also used his legs, including the second touchdown of the night which came on a fourth-and-one. With Tampa Bay expecting a run up the middle, Prescott fooled them with the play fake and found a ton of running room to his left allowing him to walk in for the score.

That wasn’t his only great play on fourth down either. In the fourth quarter after Tampa Bay made it a 24-6 game, Prescott found CeeDee Lamb wide open on fourth and four for an 18-yard touchdown.

Prescott ended the night with 305 yards through the air and four touchdowns to go along with 24 yards on the ground and another touchdown. He also had no interceptions, which had been an issue for him this season.

There’s still a long way to go but Prescott played the best game of his career and silenced a few of his critics for at least this week.

Dud: John Fassel, Special Teams Coordinator

While Brett Maher was responsible for his issues, the Cowboys special teams as a whole had a night to forget. In addition to the missed extra points, they gave up an onside kick.

After the second Tampa Bay touchdown, Noah Brown bobbled the kick and the Bucs picked it back up. The defense forced a turnover on downs but it was the worst way to cap off a bad night for special teams.

3 ways Dak Prescott, Cowboys silenced haters in Wild Card win vs Buccaneers

Dak Prescott and the Cowboys are moving on in the playoffs after they beat the Buccaneers. Here are three ways Prescott and Dallas silenced their haters.