Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs Las Vegas Raiders Betting Picks, Lines & Predictions
With both teams gunning for the playoffs, Sunday’s matchup between Tampa Bay (4-2 SU, 3-3 ATS) and Las Vegas ( 3-2 SU, 3-2 ATS) promises to be one of the most exciting games in Week 7. The Raiders are coming off a bye week after an impressive win away at the Kanas City Chiefs, while the Buccaneers will also enter the game on a high after dismantling Green Bay last time out.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs Las Vegas Raiders Betting Line Movement
The Bucs opened the week as the -3 favorites, with the line rising to 3.5 or even -4 at some bookies. The total came down to 52 after starting at 54 points, but it’s still one of the highest this week.
Thoughts On The Tampa Bay Buccaneers Beating The Las Vegas Raiders
The Buccaneers destroyed Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers last week showing that when the offense raises the game to the level of their defense, hardly anyone in the league can stop them. The question remains about their road performances and the visit to the Raiders will provide a stern test to check their consistency. Tom Brady had two touchdowns on his own last week but passed for only 166 yards on measly 27 attempts. The Raiders’ defense is far from their strong suit and Brady will have a chance to be more aggressive and control the game through the air. On the other side of the ball, the defense faces the difficult task of shutting down in-form Derek Carr and his offense which puts up over 30 points on a regular this season.
As we mentioned, Tom Brady will get his chances against the Vegas defense and with a world-class receiving core at his disposal, simply can’t be overlooked as a fantasy option. The same goes for the WR duo of Chris Goodwin and Mike Evans who weren’t targeted much last week with the Bucks mostly running due to the huge second-half lead. RB Ronald Jones had his third consecutive 100-yard game against Green Bay and will look to feast against the Raiders who allowed ten rushing touchdowns so far.
Thoughts On The Vegas Raiders Beating The Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Raiders had one of the toughest opening schedules in the league facing only one team with a losing record – the Patriots. Things won’t get much easier on Sunday, but after handling the Chiefs, they will be confident in getting another big win. The offense keeps humming and Derek Carr is playing probably the best football of his life. He has 11 TDs with just one interception so far and ranks second in quarterback rating. However, their defense is on the other end of the specter, ranking in the bottom half of the league in almost any metric available.
Four straight games with multiple touchdowns are no joke and Derek Carr has found his way into many fantasy lineups. Knowing that probably the only way to beat Tampa is to outgun them, we can expect another big performance from Las Vegas QB. WR Henry Ruggs is a sneaky good pick even though he didn’t get a lot of targets last week, likely because he’s coming on an injury. Still, he managed to make the most of his limited chances with two catches on three targets for 118 yards and a touchdown. Look for Carr to go to him more frequently this Sunday.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs Las Vegas Raiders Betting Pick Buccaneers -3.5
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers only decent away performance came against the lowly Broncos , and they will be fired up to prove that they can be as dangerous on the road as they are on home turf. The Raiders have proven that they can go toe-to-toe with the best in the league but the stingy Bucs’ defense should be able to shut them down at least to some extent.
