Dallas Cowboys vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers LIVE updates: Dak Prescott wants one more win this season

When the schedule was released in May, the matchup between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Dallas Cowboys looked like a logical choice for Week 5 Thursday Night Football . Dallas always generates interest and entered the season as one of the teams that gained momentum after a strong offseason. Tampa Bay struggled during the second half of last year, but the team still had plenty of star power and was the preseason favorite to win the NFC South .

Nobody expected the Buccaneers to reach this point.

Tampa Bay's season is already on the brink

The Buccaneers were 0-3 when they lost Baker Mayfield , who suffered a dislocated right thumb. Their emergency plan was undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels , who became the first undrafted rookie quarterback since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger to start a game in Week 4 or earlier.

Daniels performed well considering the circumstances, but Tampa Bay suffered another loss, falling 17-14 to the Green Bay Packers to drop to 0-4 .

The Bucs are now 2-11 in their last 13 games , and head coach Todd Bowles' job security is beginning to come under pressure.

Facing a winless team with an undrafted rookie quarterback represents an ideal opportunity for the Cowboys .

Dallas enters the matchup after a dramatic comeback win over the Houston Texans , defeating them 34-30 to improve to 2-2 , a respectable record considering the rest of the NFC East is also dealing with its own problems.

However, the Cowboys have plenty of concerns of their own. Their defense ranks 31st in the NFL in EPA allowed per play (Expected Points Added), ahead of only the Detroit Lions .

The offense has lived up to expectations, but the defense has yet to show significant improvement from last season, when it allowed the most points in franchise history.

The good news is that the Buccaneers, in their current situation, are one of the few teams that may not be able to take advantage of those weaknesses.

It depends on whether Tampa Bay's season is considered over. It might not be.

Mayfield could return as early as Week 6 , and a 1-4 record in the NFC South would not completely eliminate the Buccaneers from contention. However, no team in NFL history has reached the playoffs after starting a season 0-5 .

Given the few signs of life Tampa Bay has shown, this game likely means more for Dallas.

The Cowboys are only behind the New York Giants in the NFC East standings, and New York will be without quarterback Jaxson Dart for the remainder of the season.

A loss to Daniels and the Buccaneers would not only hurt Dallas in the standings; it would also create a wave of criticism that would follow the team for the next 10 days until its next game.

Key player: Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb

CeeDee Lamb has been one of the NFL's elite wide receivers for years, and he is on pace to break several career highs.

He currently leads the league with 124.5 receiving yards per game , well above his previous best mark of 102.9 . He is also averaging 9.3 receptions per game , after never averaging more than eight catches per contest in a season.

Last week, Lamb delivered a spectacular performance with 17 receptions for 189 yards and the game-winning touchdown , recording his third consecutive 100-yard game .

Tampa Bay's pass defense has been solid and has not allowed more than 245 passing yards in any game this season , but slowing down the hottest receiver in the league will be one of its biggest challenges yet.