The 11-5 Tampa Bay Buccaneers are set to face the 7-9 Washington Football team at FedExField in what should be a very unique matchup. While Tommy Terrific and the Buccaneers are entering the game as the 8.5-point favorites according to Bovada, Alex Smith and his remarkable journey continue to be the best story of the 2020-21 NFL season.
Buccaneers vs Washington Betting Odds & Game Information
- Spread: Buccaneers -8.5 (-110) | WFT +8.5 (-110)
- Total: OVER 45 (-105) |UNDER 45 (-115)
- Moneyline: Buccaneers -430 | WFT +315
- Date: January 9, 2021
- Time: 8:15 PM ET
- Location: Landover, Maryland (FedExField)
- TV: NBC
Buccaneers Betting News and Notes
Unfortunately for Smith and Washington, Tampa has a bit of a comeback story of their own as they look to make the divisional round for the first time since 2002. Brady is also trying to prove that he is still the greatest quarterback to ever lace up football boots, which has resulted in one of his best seasons ever. He is also the first QB to throw 40 touchdowns in his forties.
The total for the game is listed as 45, which could have gamblers thinking OVER with how explosive the Buccaneers offense has been. Just keep in mind that Tampa Bay games have reached over 50 points in four of their last five games. Also consider that even if the passing game isn’t gelling early, the Buccaneers have a great ground game with Ronald Jones and Leonard Fournette.
Looking at the Buccaneers and the only real asterisk they have is Mike Evans going down with a knee injury late during Sunday’s Week 17 game. The injury resulted in Evans dropping a touchdown pass from Brady, and it looked swollen afterwards, but he is currently listed as day to day. Bucs coach, Bruce Arians, claims it was just a hyper extension and that Evans was already preparing for next week in the training room.
“Yeah, the MRI showed no structural damage,” Bruce Arians said regarding Mike Evan’s status for Sunday’s game “It was a hyper extension. I just saw him in the training room a little while ago [and] he has very, very little swelling. He’ll be day-to-day.”
The other good news is that Brady had no problem moving the ball in Evans absence on Sunday, connecting with Antonio Brown and Chris Godwin for two scores each. Brady also had the benefit of a stellar running game that was led by Ronald Jones, who was able to punch it in for a score during Sunday’s game. If nothing else, losing Evans would be a bit of a hurdle for the Buccaneers, but they do have other options.
Washington Football Team Betting News & Notes
As for the Washington Football team, who opened as 7.5-point underdogs their chances depend on Alex Smith’s ability to cut down on his turnover issues. Believe it or not, Smith has a 1:1 touchdown to interception ratio in the last five games, making this very much a battle of ball control. If Smith can achieve this and get a few breaks on offense, the Washington Football Team might be able to stay in this.
Another interesting stat is that the Washington Football Team has intercepted at least one pass in all of the Team’s final five games of the season. The team even intercepted the Eagles twice during Sunday night’s season finale, but who knows if they will have the same result against the Buccaneers? Furthermore, who knows if it will even matter with how explosive Tom Brady and Tampa have been this season.
Think about it: Tom Brady has a touchdown to interception ratio of 40-12 this season and has some of the best weapons in the entire league. How is Alex Smith and the struggling Washington defense going to stand up against that? The Washington Football Team has scored 335 points this season and had a total of 329 points scored against them. That’s not exactly the mark of a successful playoff team.
