The Atlanta Falcons must be wishing they’ve gotten this hot earlier in the season when they were still in contention for a playoff spot. Still, who doesn’t want to end a regular season on a high note? The Falcons will look to punctuate their 2019 campaign with a win when they take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on the road. The Bucs are also set for an early vacation but can complete a sweep of the Falcons this season with a win.
The Falcons are headed to an early vacation, but they are finding their groove of late. After scoring a 24-12 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars at home last Sunday, Atlanta’s winning streak is now up to three games. Julio Jones ate up the Jags’ secondary in a dominant performance that proved he’s still one of the best in the business. The star wide receiver caught 10 passes and turned them into 166 receiving yards. Matt Ryan finished with 384 passing yards and a touchdown with two picks thrown on 34-of-45 completions. Ryan has thrown for at least 312 passing yards in three of Atlanta’s last four games with seven touchdowns and four interceptions over that span. Ryan wasn’t able to throw a touchdown and was intercepted once in a 35-22 home loss to the Bucs in Week 12, but that was also a game in which Atlanta was missing two of its top running backs. This time, Devonta Freeman and Brian Hill are both healthy, so expect better contributions from the Falcons’ ground attack. Still, it’s largely going to be up for Ryan and the Falcons’ passing game to carry the team on offense, as the Bucs are tough against the run.
The Falcons are 3-0 against the spread (ATS) in their last three games.
Betting on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-8)
With Jameis Winston, no one really knows what exactly the Bucs will get on a Sunday. In Week 16’s 23-20 home loss to the Houston Texans, Winston went off for 335 passing yards on 25-of-48 completions, but only had one touchdown against four interceptions. Without Mike Evans and Chris Godwin in that game, Winston showed he can still go for big yards, thanks in part to Breshad Perriman, who’s become the team’s go-to guy downfield. Perriman had 102 receiving yards on seven catches in the Texans game. Winston is a feast-or-famine type of quarterback and that was exactly the case in the previous meeting with the Falcons in which he had 313 passing yards, three touchdowns, and two interceptions. The Bucs got help from the backfield with Ronald Jones and company collecting 133 rushing yards and a touchdown. Without their top two receivers, expect the Bucs to feed their running backs the ball more in Week 17 than in the first meeting with Atlanta.
