Green Bay Packers Vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers Betting Picks, Odds Preview, & Predictions
This Sunday, we’ll once more witness the battle of all-time quarterbacks as Tom Brady’s Tampa Bay (3-2 SU, 2-3 ATS) hosts the undefeated Aaron Rodgers’ Green Bay (4-0 SU, 4-0 ATS). Rodgers has been more impressive so far and has emerged as an early MVP candidate as the Packers won all four of their opening games covering the spread each time.
Green Bay Packers Vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers Betting Line Movements
The Bucs opened as -2.5 favorites, but the line has gone up and down all week and is currently standing at evens or favoring the Packers by -1 depending on the pay per head bookie. The total went up to 55.5 after opening as low as 52.
Thoughts on Green Bay
The Packers have been a real force offensively so far and are averaging the league-leading 38 points per game. This is even more impressive if we take into account the fact that they have been without their star receiver Davante Adams in all but one game. Still, Rodgers found the way to make the most of his other targets. The rushers also stepped up with the Green Bay Packers boasting the top 5 running offense in the NFL. The defense has been out of the spotlight a bit due to the excellent attacking displays, but they also put in some great performances, especially the pass rusher Za’Darius Smith who has already recorded 5 sacks.
From the fantasy perspective, Rodgers has been nothing sort of spectacular this season, but on Sunday he’s going against the defense that has allowed only 7 touchdowns in 5 games. Still, he’s getting Davante Adams back, and we are expecting another big performance. Speaking of Adams, he’ll be raring to go and will get a lion’s share of passes, especially with Allen Lazard out. RB Aaron Jones will be hoping to continue his touchdown-a-game streak and his value shouldn’t decrease with Adams’ return. The same can’t be said for TE Robert Tonyan. Tonyan has been overperforming and the Bucks defense is superb defending the tight ends.
Thoughts On Tampa Bay
It seems that we’ll spend this season wondering which Tom Brady are we going to get each week. Only a week after destroying the Chargers with 5 touchdowns, he had a below-par display in Chicago topped of with a blunder on the final drive as he lost track of the number of downs.
However, he’s been really good at home this season and will surely be motivated after Thursday’s performance. Still, the main strength of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this season has been their defense. They rank second in total defense and first against the run, but it’s their pass defense that will have the most difficult task with Aaron Rodgers on the opposing side.
The last week’s game will probably scare fantasy players off of Brady, but on Sunday, he’ll finally have both of his key receivers, Mike Evans and Chris Goodwin ready to go. Evans has been great so far in the absence of Goodwin, and we believe his good form will continue even though his usage may suffer a little.
NFL Betting Pick: Tampa Bay +1
The Packers offense has dominated so far, but we can say the same for the Bucks defense. Both teams had plenty of time to rest, and we can expect a really close game where the home advantage could be the deciding factor.
