The Buccaneers have gotten back on track with two-straight wins as they head into their second matchup with the Atlanta Falcons. It's the team's second-straight road game and they'll be hoping to come out of Atlanta with a win just as they did in Indianapolis.
The matchup favors Tampa Bay more than it did last week. That's the good news. Atlanta ranks 26th in total offense, 22nd in total defense and is averaging just 18.1 points per game. The not as good news is that they're trending upward, sitting one game out of an NFC playoff spot and in second place in the NFC South, though the Bucs have a three-game lead there. The point is, Atlanta has everything to play for right now and division opponents are always tough given the familiarity.
That being said, this is about the time the Bucs caught fire last year. After their Week 13 bye, they didn't lose a game until Week Three of this season in Los Angeles and captured a Lombardi trophy in that span. Plus, quarterback Tom Brady is 66-16 over the course of his career in December. Oh, and he's a perfect 9-0 against the Falcons, including in the postseason. But you already knew that.
And so do the experts. Check out their picks below.
- NFL.com, Greg Rosenthal – Buccaneers
- ESPN.com, Consensus – Buccaneers (split)
- USA Today (consensus) – Buccaneers (unanimous)
- SB Nation, Consensus – Buccaneers (unanimous)
- CBSSports.com, Consensus – Buccaneers (unanimous)
