NFL Playoff Betting Odds, Predictions & Picks: Tampa Bay Buccaneers Vs Washington Football Team
The Buccaneers (11-5 SU, 9-7 ATS) will have a chance for their first postseason victory since the Super Bowl win in 2003 when they travel to Washington D.C. on Saturday to take on Washington Football Team (7-9 SU, 8-7-1 ATS). Tampa Bay’s gamble on Tom Brady has paid off and the Bucs have snapped their 13-year NFL playoff betting drought.
Washington hasn’t seen playoffs in a while either, with their last postseason appearance back in 2015. The Buccaneers ended the season with a 4-game winning streak and are the second biggest favorites of the wild-card round, while Washington managed to secure the playoff berth and top spot in the dreadful NFC East with the Week 17 win over Philadelphia.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Vs Washington Football Team NFL Playoff Betting Line Movement
The Bucs opened as -7.5 NFL playoff betting favorites, but some early action going their way pushed it to -9 at one point before consolidating at -8. The total dropped since the opening odds were announced, moving from 46.5 to 44.5 or 45 where it stands at the moment.
Notes On The Tampa Bay Buccaneers
It’s been an up and down season for the Bucs, but, eventually, they got the job done notching 11 wins and comfortably securing the playoffs spot with four consecutive wins to end the regular season. Their offense led by the GOAT Tom Brady has been on fire during those last couple of weeks, averaging over 40 points in the last three contests. Granted, those wins came against Detroit and Atlanta, but Tampa fans must have been pleased to see Brady slowly getting into playoff mode after a fairly inconsistent season. The Bucs’ defense has slipped a bit after a ferocious start to the season, but they still rank fourth in the league in sacks per game and will cause a lot of trouble for Alex Smith.
Brady has finished the season on a high, with multiple touchdowns in five of his last seven games, but, on Saturday, he’ll be facing the toughest defense he’s seen in a while. Still, even at 43 years of age, he’s a scary proposition in the playoffs and the arsenal of offensive weapons at his disposal is one of the best in the league. All things considered, he is one of the better QB fantasy prospects on Saturday’s slate. The points potential of his receivers mainly depends on the news about Mike Evans’ injury. The latest reports suggest he’s good to go. In the backfield, Ronald Jones may exploit the fact that WFT’s defense is a tad weaker against the run than against the pass, and if you think he’s got a touchdown in him, Jones is certainly a decent prospect for Saturday.
Notes On The Washington Football Team
Washington may have reached the playoffs by virtue of playing in the worst division in recent memory, but, by the end of the season, they’ve grown into a tough and serious team capable of going toe-to-toe with anyone. Head coach Ron Riviera managed to transform the team that often looked pitiful last year, into one of the hardest-to-beat, hard-nosed units in football. It’s been three months since WFT lost by more than a touchdown and is yet to be on the wrong side of a blowout since Alex Smith took over as the starting QB. The pieces came together at the perfect time, with Washington winning five of their last seven games including four wins on the road. They have certainly made themselves into a more difficult playoff opponent than their record suggests. Their main issue on Saturday is to find the way to get their offense going. They’ve only ranked 25th in passing yards and 26th in rushing. Their path to victory on Sunday will be limiting turnovers, patient attack, and another sensational performance from their defense.
Alex Smith, although the feel-good story of the season, is nowhere near the top QBs in the NFL and it’s hard to see him putting up big numbers against the Bucs defense. Wide receivers and RB Antonio Gibson don’t offer much value in this matchup either. The best pick from Washington is probably TE Logan Thomas. Tampa’s defense has been vulnerable to tight ends this season, posting the seventh-highest number of TDs allowed to opposing TEs and Thomas is probably going to be heavily involved on Saturday after having more than 6 catches in four out of the last five weeks.
NFL Playoff Betting Picks: Under 45
Washington Football Team is certainly not going to score much and their NFL playoff betting defense led by the DE trio of Chase Young, Montez Sweat, and Ryan Kerrigan is going to make life difficult for Brady as much as possible. Expect the slugfest here and take the UNDER.
