Atlanta Falcons vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers Odds & Game Pick (2021)

Sep 18, 2021 - 10:20 AM

Divisional play will get underway Sunday in the NFC South as a pair of veteran quarterbacks will go at it in Tampa. For the visiting Falcons, one of the league’s worst Week 1 performances will hopefully be put in the rearview as they got punched directly in the mouth at home vs. the Eagles. It was quite a different story, as you’d assume, for the Bucs. A methodical 4th quarter drive secured the win for the Super Bowl Champs vs. Dallas.

Let’s take a closer look at this divisional matchup and see where we can spot the edge.

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Details

• Opening Line: Buccaneers -13.5 O/U 53
• Current Line: Buccaneers -12.5, O/U 52
• Last meeting: January 3, 2021, Buccaneers 44, Falcons 27

Overview 

The Arthur Smith era in Atlanta got out of the gates with a thud on Sunday as they lost at home in blowout fashion to the supposedly rebuilding Philadelphia Eagles. Failing to find any rhythm, quarterback Matt Ryan struggled to just 136 yards through the air on 35 attempts.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Falcons allowed young Eagles’ quarterback Jalen Hurts to throw for 261 yards and three touchdowns, while the running backs ran for another 173 yards.

For the defending Super Bowl Champion Buccaneers, a sloppy game on both sides of the ball was still enough to knock off the visiting Cowboys, as the Goat, Tom Brady, did Goat things, throwing for 379 yards and four touchdowns in the back-and-forth victory.

The defense certainly has room for improvement heading into week two, as they allowed Dallas 451 yards of total offense and largely looked lost on assignments throughout the night.

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Trends 

• The Falcons are 14-3 ATS in their last 17 Week 2 performances
• The Over is 6-0 in the Buccaneer’s last six vs. teams with losing records
• The home team is 6-2 ATS in the last eight Falcons vs. Buccaneers games

Bottom Line 

This line has since come down from an opening at nearly two touchdowns, but I think the oddsmakers were more right than the bettors in this case. Not only do the Buccaneers have less to worry about in terms of quarterback play outside of the pocket, but a line that gave up no sacks vs. Dallas gets an even easier assignment in this one.

While week 1 was impressive, I look for the Bucs to clean up their mistakes in this one and blow out their divisional foe.

Pick: Buccaneers -12.5

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