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Primetime football games have been disappointing in 2023, and this week’s game doesn’t seem like it’s going to be any different. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers travel to Buffalo to face off against the Bills on Thursday night.
These two teams have been struggling for the most part but have many upsides to their season so far.
Buffalo is coming off of a loss to their division rival in New England. To most people, the Patriots are considered one of the worst teams in the league but managed to pull off an impressive 29-25 win against Buffalo. The Bills will look to get back on track against the Buccaneers.
Tampa Bay is coming off of a division loss to the Falcons. The Bucs are now 3-3 on the season, but they are still in a position to win this division if they can get it together. Let’s break down our same game parlay for the contest.
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While James Cook has become the first clear number-one back in Buffalo since the Fred Jackson days, he is on pace for a lousy game against the Buccaneers. Tampa Bay possesses the 9th best-rushing defense in the league through the first seven weeks.
The Buccaneers defense only gives up 95.8 total rushing yards per game. That’s an insanely low amount, and to think they are only the 9th best is mind-blowing. Opposing teams against Tampa Bay average 25.3 rushes per game, which comes out to 3.78 yards.
Cook has seen his fair share of bad games this season running the ball. He has hit this under three of the seven games this year.
Tampa Bay is the best-rushing defense he’s faced. We expect Cook to be used often but not to surpass the 51.5 rushing yards mark, as many have gone under that amount this season against the Buccaneers.
Oddly enough, the Bills and the Buccaneers have averaged less than 20 points per game this season. Tampa Bay averages 17.3 points per game, while Buffalo averages only 16.9 points per game. While these two defenses have experienced injury issues, they have still managed to keep tabs on the opposing offense.
A few weeks ago, the Bills lost cornerback Tre'davious White to a non-contact injury that ended his season.
It was later determined that it was a torn Achilles, and he would not return until 2024. Meanwhile, the defense still gives up the 5th least points per game.
Tampa Bay's offense only averages 17.2 points per game. Their defense is also top 10 in the league as well. The more you look into this matchup, the more you will overthink this under. We expect a relatively low-scoring affair with a score of 22-14 Bills.
Dawson Knox was placed on injured reserve and is expected to undergo wrist surgery sometime this week, clearing the way for rookie tight end Dalton Kincaid to take the number one tight end spot for at least four games.
Kincaid has shown he can get it done but had Knox breathing down his neck, limiting his productivity. Even with Knox in the game, Kincaid has averaged over 32 receiving yards.
On average, Tampa Bay gives up 246.6 passing yards per game with 24.2 completions per game. We fully expect Josh Allen to get the ball out to his new starting tight end for at least 25 yards. He’s proven that he can get this small amount of yards in just a catch or two.
Buffalo has been a top-10 team in the NFL since Josh Allen got drafted. Since then, they’ve traded for Stefon Diggs, made a top-five offense, and haven’t looked back.
The Bills have a revamped defense and a stellar offense that hasn’t seemed to click yet. With a 4-3 record, the Bills have losses to the Patriots, Jaguars, and the Jets.
The loss to Jacksonville was the only respectable defeat. This is a get-right game for Buffalo as they look to turn last week's loss into an afterthought.
Buffalo's defense gives up the 5th least points to opposing teams. With Baker Mayfield finding little success in such a stacked offense, this should be a walk in the park for the Super Bowl contending Bills.
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Tanner Kern has been working in the betting industry since 2020. He currently is a social media content creator at DraftKings and contributes to multiple sites in addition to WSN, including Forbes and VSiN. He is also the cohost of the podcast Ride the Line at WSN.
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