Game Recap: Cowpokes Lose Opener to Bucs, 19-3

Coming into the regular season, the two biggest concerns at the Dallas Cattle's pest position were their wide receivers and the opposing line. Assuming this opening game is any indication, they have a lot to stress about…and they currently need to add a quarterback to this slump with Dak Prescott expected to miss half a month with a hand injury.

When they thrashed the Tampa Cove Pirates, 19-3, in front of a sellout horde of 93,797 fans, the Cattlemen couldn't muster much on any opposing threat in that frame of mind. The enemy line performed modestly, the situation being what it is, however, consistency and penalties were an issue.

If it matters to them, the receiving corps has generally tried to clear space, so Dak Prescott, who was not sharp in any way, shape or form, just completed 14 of 29 passes for 134 yards and a 47.2 passer rating. New No. 1 wideout CeeDee Sheep was tagged a few times but just hauled in two passes for 29 yards.

Far and far scarier Prescott then needed to leave the game with a five-minute stay with a physical problem on his throwing arm, the X-beam results report would come. Still, Dak said after the game that he hopes to have a medical procedure on his thumb, and it looks like the cattle prod will miss a few games.

The only highlight of the offense might have been Ezekiel Elliott, who rushed up the middle for 5.2 yards per carry. In any case, after much discussion about the group depending on the game at hand, Elliott just got the ball a few times as he finished the night with 52 rushing yards. Meanwhile, despite some talk that Tony Pollard would factor in more, he oversaw just eight yards on six carries, 1.3 normal, with two receiving for 14 more yards.

It's clear that coming into this season, the Cowpokes realize they'll have to rely on their defense, and led by Micah Parsons, last season's Rookie of the Year, the unit has basically kept the unit from going completely crazy. All things considered, future Lobby of Famer Tom Brady did what Tom Brady does, passing for 212 yards and an 87.3 rating.

Running back Leonard Fournette may have done more damage as he scrambled for 127 yards on 21 carries. He and the Marauders' guard, which held Dallas to 244 total yards of offense, ended up doing a lot in this one. Exploring Tampa Cove amassed 347 all-purpose yards of offense.

First quarter

The different sides traded field goals on their opening drives of the game, with Brett Maher splitting the uprights from 51 yards out. Tampa Straight's Ryan Succop then answered with a 44-yard field goal of his own at that point.

Tragically, the Cowpokes suffered a blow during their most memorable time together as left tackle Connor McGovern left the game with a lower leg injury. For an opposing line that is now a treat due to the lack of Tyron Smith, seeing another starter shut down was something they undoubtedly couldn't handle.

Succop went two-for-two on the Marauders' opening two series as this time he was brilliant from 38 yards out to give the visitors an early lead.

Second quarter

The Marauders entered Cattle rustlers' domain again on their third down, but after Parsons sacked Tom Brady on third-and-8, Dallas got a break when Succop pulled his kick wide. However, cattle rustlers failed to exploit this flaw.

In fact, it was a remarkable reverse, as on 3rd-and-10 from his own 26-yard line, Prescott was then picked off by Tampa Sound safety Antoine Winfield, the Pirates set up at the Dallas 23-yard line. Fortunately, the safety held and Parsons got his second sack of the night to force another field goal attempt. This time Succop was brilliant from 29 yards.

Another Tampa Sound unit, another open door in the field. Fortunately, Dallas' defense kept the Pirates out of the end zone, but the visitors went into halftime with a 12-3 advantage after Succop kicked a 47-yard field goal with 14 seconds left in the fourth quarter.

Maybe the cattle rustlers were lucky to be somewhere around nine. At halftime, the Pirates outgained the Ranchers 294 yards to just 94, just 53 of which came through the air.

The second from last quarter

After hitting the finish line so often, the Pirates finally came through. The Marauders started at their own 10-yard line with just over eight minutes left in the quarter. The Marauders got going on three straight drives by Fournette for a combined 37 yards. Then it was Brady's chance as he completed 4 of 5 passes for 39 yards, the rest being a 5-yard toss to Mike Evans in the left half of the end zone for the game-tying score.

That earlier made the Marauders appear to have an unrealistic 19-3 lead heading into the final quarter.

Final quarter

The Cowpokes were frantic to go all out on fourth-and-2 at the Marauders' 41-yard line, but Prescott's pass to freshman Dennis Houston was tipped and broken up. Only three snaps into the Tampa Straight's next possession, but a feel-good Donovan Wilson hauled in a Brady bid and his catch gave Dallas the ball at its own 48-yard line.

Still unable to get anything going on offense, the Ranchers' night went downhill when Prescott needed to leave the game late in the fourth quarter after his throwing arm took a hit on a continuous play. He was gone to storage not long after Cooper Rush entered the game.

Clearly, the clock has decided to strike zeros as quickly as possible. When that happened, the Ranchers headed into Week 2 of this young 2022 season with a lot more questions to answer.