Falcons vs Buccaneers Prediction & Picks: NFL Week 8

Buccaneers -2.5 is where Sean Green and Ryan Kramer both ended up, and Tampa Bay’s defense did most of the talking. The Falcons visit the Buccaneers on Sunday, November 1 at 1:00 PM ET in Tampa, FL. The Buccaneers were 2.5-point favorites with a total of 44.5 when the guys taped on October 28. Atlanta got a fair argument too, and you can hear all of it in the NFL Picks Week 8 episode.

Falcons vs Buccaneers Odds

The Buccaneers were 2.5-point favorites over the Falcons, with a total of 44.5, when the guys taped on October 28. On air the money line was Buccaneers -140 and Falcons +120.

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Ryan Kramer (@KramerCentric): Buccaneers -2.5
Sean Green (@SeanTGreen): Buccaneers -2.5

Ryan had bet this one already, and the reasoning started with last week. The Buccaneers took care of business, the offense barely had to throw, and the run game was good enough that it didn’t need to. He liked that the defense also had a strong showing. His handicap came down to one question: if the game turns sloppy and gross, which side do you trust to stop the other team’s run game? He said the way the Tampa Bay defense is playing, that is the side he wants. He sees a lower-scoring game and even floated a first-half totals parlay.

Sean was the one who pushed back. He likes the Buccaneers defense, but he worried it could be a Kyle Pitts game, noting that Pitts did well against Todd Bowles’ defense last year. He called the Atlanta defense quietly underrated, said it ranks in the top 10 in a lot of metrics, and pointed out that the Falcons have won five of their last seven meetings with the Buccaneers. His biggest concern was Baker not having played well yet this season, with a real pass rush coming at him.

Ryan agreed there were lots of reasons to take Atlanta, including the win over San Francisco. The guys also took a detour into point differential. Sean checked and found the Falcons at negative two and the Buccaneers at plus nine, and the Buccaneers were the only NFC South team in the positive. Ryan also gave the betting splits when Sean asked, with more of the tickets on the Falcons and more of the dollars on the Buccaneers. Sean called the Falcons the public team and stuck with the Buccaneers, citing Tampa Bay’s ability to run on Atlanta.

Hear the full breakdown on the NFL Picks Week 8 episode, or listen on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Watch every game on YouTube, and download the SGPN app at sg.pn/links. See all our NFL Picks.