NFL today: How to watch Buccaneers v Cowboys, TV channels & live stream Thursday 8 October

Dak Prescott will lead out the Cowboys against the Bucs. Photograph: Erik Williams/ZUMA Press Wire/ShutterstockView image in fullscreenDak Prescott will lead out the Cowboys against the Bucs. Photograph: Erik Williams/ZUMA Press Wire/ShutterstockNFL today: How to watch Buccaneers v Cowboys, TV channels & live stream Thursday 8 OctoberHow will the Buccaneers and Cowboys fare today? Here is what to know, including kick-off time, TV channels and live stream options

The bad news for the Buccaneers: Their 0-4 start has been an unmitigated disaster that, in normal circumstances, would have already evaporated their playoff chances. The good news for Tampa Bay, however, is that they play in the NFC South, meaning they’re still just two games out of a tie for the lead in what is often the worst division in the NFL. All is not quite lost yet.

If the Bucs want to join the 1992 Chargers and become the second team to make the postseason after an 0-4 opening, they’ll need to stop the bleeding on Thursday night in north Texas. They’ll have to do it without Baker Mayfield, who continues to nurse an injury to his throwing thumb.

They’ll face a challenge against the Cowboys, who are just 2-2 but look like slim favorites in the NFC East while the Eagles struggle to get out of neutral. The Cowboys have gotten an excellent first four games from Dak Prescott, who has paced one of the most efficient offenses in football. No team is scoring more than Dallas’ 3.4 points per offensive series, and it’s been Prescott and the passing game doing most of that work. (Nearly 75%t of Dallas’ yards have come through the air, compared to a league average of two-thirds.) A big outing against Tampa Bay would solidify the Cowboys’ path to a division title.

Stadium: AT&T Stadium (Arlington, Texas)

United Kingdom: Watch on Sky Sports NFL or Sky Sports Main Event, or stream with NOW or NFL Game Pass on DAZN.

Jerry Jones loves a splashy deal, and he made one before last week’s win over the Texans. The Cowboys sent out a package built around a second-round draft choice to bring in Steelers cornerback Joey Porter, who didn’t make a Pro Bowl in his first four seasons but established himself as one of the league’s tougher man-to-man cover players all the same. The next touchdown Porter surrenders as the primary defender on a target will be the first of his career. Dallas made the deal without giving Porter the new contract that had eluded him in Pittsburgh, suggesting Jones saw his acquisition as a win-now endeavor.

The Bucs will ride for another week, at least, with rookie QB Jalon Daniels. The Kansas product made his debut in Week 4 and finished 27th of the league’s 32 QBs in passer rating that week, and dead last in yardage per attempt. He sprinkled in a pair of interceptions — not an ideal start for a rookie who is about to turn 24 and whose six years of collegiate experience might have suggested a less rocky debut. Will Daniels find it hospitable to go up against the team that is dead-last in the NFL in net yards allowed per passing attempt (8) through the first four weeks? Tampa Bay’s last flickers of hope depend on it.