Once Upon A Time In Las Vegas
The (8-8 SU, 4-11-1 ATS) Tampa Bay Buccaneers and (6-10 SU, 8-8 ATS) Atlanta Falcons will take the field for an NFC South clash Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The Bucs, 3-4 on the road, beat Carolina 30-24 last week. The Falcons, 5-3 at home, defeated Arizona 20-19.
Tampa Bay beat Atlanta 21-15 at home on Oct. 9. The Falcons stormed back from a 21-point deficit with 15 fourth-quarter points, but their comeback fell short. The game was marred by a questionable roughing the passer penalty on Falcons defensive lineman Grady Jarrett that allowed the Buccaneers to run out the game clock. Tampa Bay is 30-28 all-time versus Atlanta, and Bucs QB Tom Brady has never lost to the Falcons.
Kickoff from Atlanta is at 1:00 p.m. ET. The Falcons are four-point spread favorites, and the game total is 40.5 points.
The Buccaneers clinched the NFC South in last week's victory over the Panthers and are the fourth seed in the NFC Playoffs. Tampa Bay scored 20 fourth-quarter points behind the future Hall of Famer Brady, who passed for 432 yards and three touchdowns — all to receiver Mike Evans. The TDs were Evans' first scores in 12 games. His 207-yard performance pushed him over 1,000 receiving yards, making him the first player in NFL history to achieve that mark in nine consecutive seasons to start his career.
While it was a rousing comeback, at just 8-8 straight-up and 4-11-1 against the spread, the Bucs need to play more consistently in the postseason if they hope to advance.
“The playoffs start a clean slate for everybody,” Bucs head coach Todd Bowles said. “You’ve got a three-game elimination tournament. Doesn’t matter where you are. … At least we know we’ll be in the games. We just have to cut down on the mistakes in order to win them.”
HIM. pic.twitter.com/jOv6fSwsos
— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) January 3, 2023
Tampa Bay averages 18.5 points and 354.5 total yards per game, including 76.4 rushing yards (32nd in the NFL) and 278.1 passing yards (2nd in the NFL). The Buccaneers have a -2 turnover differential and are 22nd in third down conversion percentage (36.9%). Tampa Bay converts 51.0 percent of its red zone opportunities into touchdowns, the eighth-lowest percentage in the league.
The Bucs give up 20.5 points and 320.7 total yards per contest, including 117.4 rushing yards and 203.3 passing yards. They're 8th in points allowed per game, 15th in rushing yards allowed, 8th in passing yards allowed, and 7th in total yards allowed. Tampa Bay's opponents convert 36.6 percent of their third downs, the sixth-lowest conversion percentage, and 61.3 percent of their red zone opportunities into touchdowns, the eighth-highest conversion percentage.
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