Our Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Dallas Cowboys pick: Cowboys by 5.5, 66% to win, against a betting line of Cowboys −9.5. The forecast starts from what each team’s play has been worth once the luck is adjusted for, adds last season, who starts at quarterback and who is out hurt, and home field. No betting information goes in.
An early look, 2 weeks ahead: it sharpens as the game comes up. Updated every day until kickoff, then frozen and scored. After the game this page shows who deserved to win.
Why the curves are so wide: luck. Even with both teams’ strength known exactly, one game’s bounces, kicks, calls and sequencing move the final margin by about ±12.1 points (one standard deviation, measured from every play since 2019). These forecasts carry ±13.1, so about 85% of the width is that luck; the rest is what nobody knows yet about the teams. That is why a 7-point favorite still loses about 3 times in 10.
Coin-flip wins: the wins each team’s games were worth with only the kicks, bounces, drops and calls re-rolled, the record adjusted for luck. Luck in wins: actual wins minus what the play was worth.
Buccaneers vs Cowboys: questions and answers
Who will win Buccaneers vs Cowboys?
Our forecast picks the Cowboys, with 66% to win; the Buccaneers win 34% of the time.
What’s the spread for Buccaneers vs Cowboys?
Our spread: Cowboys −5.5. The betting line: Cowboys −9.5. Ours uses no betting information, so where the two differ is where our read of the teams differs from the market’s.
When is Buccaneers vs Cowboys?
Thursday, October 8, 2026, at 8:15 pm ET, at AT&T Stadium.
Buccaneers at 
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