Dallas Cowboys: Inside the numbers for Super Wild Card Weekend

After failing to secure the NFC East title, the Dallas Cowboys (12-5) open the playoffs on the road at Raymond James Stadium against Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-9) in the final game of Super Wild Card Weekend. It is just the third time the Cowboys and Bucs have met in the playoffs and the first time in 40 years. Here is a look inside the numbers the Buccaneers will bring into Monday night’s showdown.

9 – Buccaneers veteran Mike Evans is nine for nine. The wide receiver has completed nine seasons in the NFL and has eclipsed the 1,000-yard receiving mark in each of those seasons. In the 2022 season, Evans finished with 77 catches for 1,124 yards and six touchdowns to lead all Buccaneers’ wideouts. It is the fifth-best season of his career, behind the 1,524 yards he put up in 2018, as well as the 1,321 in 2016, 1,206 in 2015, and 1,157 in 2019. He is the franchise leader in receiving yards with 10,425, almost 5,000 yards more than his closest competition on the list – teammate Chris Godwin (5,666 yards).

66.7 – Despite being 45 years old, Tom Brady just finished the regular season completing nearly two of every three passes he threw. He completed 490 of 733 attempts while completing one for a touchdown every 19.6 completions. And, despite bringing down his completion percentage as a Buccaneer this season, Brady still leads the franchise in the category by completing 1,376 of 2,062 passes in his three regular seasons in Tampa.

124 – Linebackers Lavonte David and Devin White led a Tampa Bay defense that finished in the top half of all the major statistical categories this season. The duo led the team in tackles, with 124 each, while David added three sacks and five passes defensed, and White contributed 5½ sacks and an NFL-leading three fumble recoveries. They are the only two players on the defense to record more than 100 tackles this season.

127 – Despite giving up just under 2,200 rushing yards to their opponents, the Cowboys only allowed three running backs to gain over 100 yards all season. Tampa Bay running back Leonard Fournette was the first this season when he rushed for 127 yards on 21 carries in Week 1. The other running backs to cross the century mark against the Dallas run defense were Green Bay’s Aaron Jones, who had 138 yards in Week 10, and Travis Etienne Jr., who had 103 yards in Week 15.

1983 – It will be almost 40 years to the day since the last time the Cowboys and the Buccaneers met in the postseason. On Jan. 9, 1983, Cowboys quarterback Danny White outdueled Tampa Bay quarterback Doug Williams in a 30-17 win for Dallas in an NFC Wild Card game. White completed 27 of 45 passes for 312 yards and two touchdowns, while Williams completed just 8 of 28 throws for 113 yards, with one touchdown and three interceptions. Cowboys running back Tony Dorsett chipped in with 110 yards on 26 carries. The only other playoff meeting came in 1982, with Dallas getting the win 38-0 in the NFC Divisional round.

89,214 – In just three years with the franchise, quarterback Tom Brady has already moved to third on the franchise’s all-time passing yards list after a season that saw him throw for 4,694 yards. In 18 years with New England, Brady put up 74,571 passing yards, then added another 14,643 yards over the last three seasons in Tampa Bay. Now, after 23 seasons, Brady is less than 800 yards from 90,000 in his career, almost 10,000 more yards than Drew Brees, who sits second on the all-time list.