Playoff Betting Preview: Bet on Tampa D against Dallas

• The Tampa Bay Buccaneers face the Dallas Cowboys in the playoff round, with the outcome of the game largely dependent on the ability of the ‘Bucs’ defense to force two or more turnovers.
• Dak Prescott and the rest of the Cowboys’ offense have turned the ball over a lot this season, making Tampa the best bet on the moneyline with +115 odds.

TAMPA, Fla. – Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are 2.5-point underdogs when they host the Dallas Cowboys on Monday Night Football with a spot in the NFC Divisional Round on the line.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs Dallas Cowboys Odds

Team	Spread	Moneyline	Total
Dallas Cowboys	-2.5 (-110)	-135	O45.5 (-110)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	+2.5 (-110)	+115	U45.5 (-110)

The NFL betting site has put limited stock in the turnover issues for the Dallas Cowboys offense, which could lead to players getting elite value on the Bucs moneyline with +115 odds.

Betting on Dallas Turnovers

Dallas’ offense is tied for the eight most turnovers in the entire NFL this season at 23, with the Buffalo Bills (27) the only playoff team that has been worse than the ‘Boys at taking care of the ball.

That may be problematic against Tampa Bay, as their record is strongly correlated to forcing turnovers:

• Buccaneers when forcing 2+ turnovers: 3-1 Straight up; 2-2 Against the Spread
• Buccaneers when forcing less than 2 Turnovers: 5-8 Straight Up; 2-10-1 Against the Spread

Like most teams, turnovers forced have had a clear cause and effect on the Buccaneers’ ability to win games.

Dallas has had a similar split regarding turnovers committed by their offense:

• Cowboys when turning it over 2+ times: 3-4 Straight up; 1-6 Against the Spread
• Cowboys when turning it over less than twice: 9-1 Straight up; 9-1 Against the Spread

Season-long trends suggest the Buccaneers may be able to force a few turnovers and win as an outright underdog at legal sports betting sites:

• Dak Prescott is tied with Davis Mills of the Houston Texans with the most interceptions in the NFL despite only starting 12 games.
• Prescott has the worst interception rate in the NFL at 3.8%, with no other playoff quarterback above 2.5%.
• Tampa Bay has forced three turnovers in two of their past three games.

With the Cowboys turnover problem a nationally recognized problem and the Buccaneers largely turnover dependent to win their games, betting on Lavonte David and the rest of the Buccaneers defense to make a few big plays and come up with a win as a +115 underdog is a strong bet to close out Wild Card weekend.

News tags: Bovada | Buffalo Bills | Dallas Cowboys | Houston Texans | NFL | Tampa Bay Buccaneers