By DaVince “Dino” Wright
Game Info
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs New Orleans Saints
Sunday – October 31 – 3:25 p.m.
TV: FOX
Caesars Superdome – New Orleans, LA
Records Before the Game
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-1, 2-1 Away)
New Orleans Saints (4-2, 1-1 Home)
These are the top two teams in the NFC South for this divisional match up. Tampa Bay is the favorite to win the division and make another run at the Super Bowl. New Orleans has given the ball to Jameis Winston who is playing some really good ball with the departure of Saint quarterback Drew Brees. This game will be the turning point for the Saints if they can get a win against the Bucs. Let’s take a closer look at this NFC South match up in New Orleans.
Controlled Fury
There’s a huge difference between playing hard and playing smart. Last week, the Saints totally broke down and gave up way too many penalty yards to the Seattle Seahawks on the road. On the defensive side of the ball, they gave up seven pass interference and unsportsmanlike penalties. They almost lost the game by allowing their emotions and pride take center stage instead of controlling them. This week if they play stupid ball and give away yards, they will get blown out against Tampa bay.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Bucs QB Tom Brady is racking up league records every week. His offensive line is doing a great job of allowing him to get the ball to key players down the field. The Bucs have weapons in all key positions on offense. This week TE Rob Gronkowski is listed as questionable and might get some playing time on the road. On the defensive side of the ball CB Richard Sherman, LB Lavonte David and LB Jason Pierre-Paul will come back as well. Tampa Bay will give the Saints all that they can handle on both sides of the ball. Tampa Bay has given up an average of 21 points per game with missing players on the defensive side of the ball.
New Orleans Saints
Saints fans from across the country were a bit taken back when QB Jameis Winston was named starter this year. If you look at his numbers they are decent across the board. He has 1114 passing yards, 13 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. He has some pretty good guys around him playing key positions. Running back Alvin Kamara is the ultimate weapon that carries the ball and catches passes. The Saints got former running back Mark Ingram II back from the Houston Texans in a recent trade. Ingram II and Kamara played great together before Ingram II left to play for Baltimore a few years ago. Look for the Saints running game to be the x factor for the rest of the season.
Prediction
ESPN has the Buccaneers with a 64% chance of winning on the road this week. The over/under is 48.5 so take the over. Everyone thinks that the Bucs will win easily this week. I think not! I’m taking the Saints by 6!
Final Score
Saints – 33
Tampa Bay – 27
