The Tampa Bay Buccaneers face a simple equation to reach the postseason, they need to beat the 5-11 New Orleans Saints to win the NFC South and tie up either the #3 or #4 seed in the conference.
The New Orleans Saints have had a season to forget with injuries badly blighting their effort and it looks set to handicap them once again in this game with many of their starters missing practice this week.
They would love to play spoiler to their NFC South rivals but they face a big uphill battle for a team who have lost four of their last five games.
Mike Evans Over 100.5 receiving yards - 10/11
While much of the focus in this game will be on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ efforts to reach the postseason, there is a big personal achievement on the line.
Bucs’ receiver Mike Evans is chasing 1,000 receiving yards for the season, and he is 85 short at present, which would make it the 11th campaign in a row that he has reached that tally.
That would match Hall of Famer Jerry Rice for the most consecutive seasons in a row to reach 1,000 receiving yards.
A hamstring injury kept Evans out for multiple weeks and the record looked unlikely, but he has been in fine form since returning, averaging over 100 yards per game in his last five games.
Expect Baker Mayfield to target Evans early and often against a Saints defence that has struggled recently and the receiver to go over the total.
Baker Mayfield to throw an interception - 1/1
Baker Mayfield has been impressive in leading the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to the brink of the playoffs this season. Only Joe Burrow has more passing touchdowns than Mayfield’s 39, and his 4,279 passing yards also ranks in the top five of the NFL.
However, he also ranks second in the league with 15 interceptions and has thrown six in his last five games.
The Bucs will be keeping it in the air as they hunt for Evans’ receiving record, but this is no secret to the Saints, so expect them to be aggressive in the secondary.
The New Orleans’ secondary ranks above average for interceptions in the league this season and with Mayfield likely to be aggressive, they could add to their tally in this game.
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Money Line | Spread | Over/Under | |
Buccaneers | -14.0 - 10/11 | Over 43.5 - 10/11 | |
Saints | +14.0 - 10/11 | Under 43.5 - 10/11 |
Under 43.5 points - 10/11
A number of key injuries to New Orleans Saints players, including quarterback Derek Carr, running back Alvin Kamara, Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Chris Olave means that the away team will be down to the bare bones.
Backup quarterback Spencer Rattler has shown very little to suggest that he is about to usurp Carr as the New Orleans’ number one, throwing more interceptions than touchdowns this season.
He has averaged just 169 passing yards in his last three starts and a quarterback rating of 59.7 and 51.1 in his previous two games.
As a result, the Saints look unlikely to play much of a role in this game from a scoring perspective, and the under makes plenty of appeal as a result.
The Bucs could rack up the score early and then choose to take their foot off the pedal if they are out of sight, particularly with the postseason on the horizon, so this looks unlikely to be a high-scoring affair. Take the under in this final game of the season.
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.