The games keep coming thick and fast in the NFL, and we have a fabulous showdown to look forward to on Sunday as the Tampa Bay Bucs collide with the Kansas City Chiefs.
So far, the location of the game remains up in the air. Originally, scheduled to be played at the Bucs’ home – the Raymond James Stadium – a hurricane (Hurricane Ian) appears to be heading to Florida, so, Minnesota has been chosen as a contingency plan, and the US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis could now stage the game.
- Chiefs quarter-back Patrick Mahomes lacked rhythm, completing less than 60% of his passes for 262 yards. Mahomes looked uncomfortable as he was pressured on 38% of his dropbacks.
- The Chiefs converted on a meager three of 10 third-down touchdown attempts against the Colts.
- Tom Brady was subdued for the Bucs, but he missed top receiver Mike Evans due to suspension, while Chris Godwin and Julio Jones were ruled out through injuries.
- The Bucs has allowed a minuscule 9.0 points per game, and they are one of the NFL’s leaders for sacks and third-down defense.
This matchup will represent a repeat of Super Bowl LV where the Bucs overpowered the Chiefs and romped to a 31-9 victory. As you might expect, there will be a flurry of betting activity on this game at the top US online betting sites.
But will the Chiefs fail to read the script? To ramp up the excitement, we have handpicked a couple of tips for you to mull over.
Tampa Bay Bucs to get back on track
Widely fancied to lift the Lombardi Trophy at the end of the season, the Bucs were forced to pay the price for some costly mistakes, and they were naïve against the Packers.
However, the Bucs v Chiefs has been billed as the marquee matchup between Brady and Mahomes, and Brady, who threw three touchdown passes in the Super Bowl LV win over the Chiefs, will be eager to stamp his mark on the game.
Like the Chiefs, the Bucs boast a 2-1 record after three games. However, as far as the overall head-to-head is concerned, the Chiefs edge things 8-6 going into their 15th meeting.
The Bucs will be keen to get off to a quick start, and they could end up being too strong for the Chiefs. If you like the look of the Moneyline, BetRivers has obliged by offering odds of -103 for the Bucs to clinch victory, which seems a relatively fair price.
Tampa Bay Bucs to finish with a flourish
Perhaps what has been surprising if we are to take a quick snapshot of the Bucs’ season so far, is that they have been involved in some low-scoring games. Against the Packers, they mustered just 12 points.
If we are to reflect on past encounters between the Bucs and the Chiefs, then Tampa’s 3-0 victory in 1979 represented the lowest-scoring contest in franchise history.
Although the Bucs’ injury list is mounting which hasn’t helped their cause, they found it hard to move the ball around and score against the Chiefs.
There needs to be more of a balance struck, but the Bucs won’t accept another sub-standard display. This could be the week where the Bucs rack up more points on the board, and they could well finish the game with a flourish.
If you are a fan of the Total Points section, then you can get a short-looking price of -112 with FanDuel for the Bucs to score Over 23 points, so this may be worth exploring.
