Two NFL division leaders – one with a non-so-impressive record – meet in Thursday Night Football tonight. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers face the Baltimore Ravens in a game that has the Bucs not showing any signs of wanting to make it to the Super Bowl so far this season.
Tampa Bay has three wins and four losses heading into tonight’s game. Most recently, they suffered an embarrassing loss to the Carolina Panthers, going down 21-3.
Baltimore has four wins and three losses following a string of close games. They’re coming off a win against the Cleveland Browns, hopeful of toppling QB Tom Brady and the Bucs.
Bucs Against the Ropes
Right now, the Buccaneers lead the NFC South and the Ravens are in a tie at the top of the AFC North. However, Tampa Bay’s position at the top of the division doesn’t say much. All four of the teams have losing records, and their loss to the Panthers – who were 1-5 at the time – was a wake-up call.
| Ravens | Buccaneers | |
| Moneyline | -105 | -115 |
| Spread | +1 (-110) | -1 (-110) |
| Over/under | 45.5 (-110) | |
| Courtesy of BetMGM |
The Bucs take the field with a lot of problems, having accumulated two consecutive losses. They have a chance to climb out of the slump by defeating the Ravens in front of their home crowd.
Tampa Bay has yet to suffer three straight losses during the Tom Brady era. The Bucs have taken back-to-back losses in two of the last three seasons, but answered with at least four straight wins.
Baltimore couldn’t count on QB Lamar Jackson too much last week since his performance was nothing to brag about. He completed nine of 16 passes for just 120 yards – less than half of what Browns QB Jacoby Brissett put up.
However, he’s great on the ground. Jackson rushed for 59 yards last week, putting him in a very elite segment of QBs. Still, it took a couple of Browns penalties, and the accuracy of kicker Justin Tucker’s foot, to save the day.
Credit has to be given to running back Gus Edwards, as well. He was responsible for the Ravens’ two TDs, making a return to the field for the first time since an injury sidelined him in 2020.
Ravens Get The Nod
The game leans toward the Ravens, since, in the last four contests between these two, they’ve won all of them. Tampa Bay has never been able to defeat head coach John Harbaugh.
Being a local underdog, even if it is just in spirit, is a rarity for Brady. He’s been in this situation as the starting quarterback just 12 times in his career, but the three-time NFL MVP led his team to victory in nine of those contests and covered the spread in all but one.
On paper, the Bucs get a slight advantage with sportsbooks tonight, but haven’t proven that they deserve it. Until game day, the Ravens were ahead on the moneyline almost everywhere.
If Sunday was any indication, neither of these two teams will be turning up the heat tonight. They’re both coming off a short break and are a little banged up.
Although these two teams have strong offenses, this game will likely only come close to touching the over/under. The under has hit in six of Tampa Bay’s last seven and four of Baltimore’s last four.
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