The Tampa Bay Buccaneers travel to Ford Field to play the Detroit Lions this week. With losses in two of their last three, Detroit comes into this game looking to rekindle a season that has lost its spark. Players will take the field Sunday at 1:00 p.m. ET and the game will air on FOX.
Detroit picked up a win over Chicago 34-17 last week. Calvin Johnson had a huge game in the victory, recording 11 receptions for 146 yards and two TDs. Joique Bell had a big game as well, totaling 91 yards and two TDs on 23 carries. Tampa Bay didn’t have the same success as Detroit, losing a game they could have won against Cincinnati 14-13. Danny Lansanah led the way for the Tampa Bay defense, totaling 14 tackles.
Nobody is expecting a close score this week when the Buccaneers, a clear eight-point underdog, take on Detroit. According to the oddsmakers, the Over/Under (O/U) is currently 41 points. The Lions enter the game with records of 8-4 Straight Up (SU) and 6-6 Against The Spread (ATS) this season. In the past five games, Detroit is 3-2 SU and 2-3 ATS. Over the last five games, the Detroit passing attack was near-unstoppable, averaging 280.8 yards passing per game in that time span. When it comes to scoring defense, the Lions know what they’re doing. Those who are unfortunate enough to face them average a league-worst 17.2 points per game. Expect the Buccaneers to have a difficult time running the ball against the No. 1 run defense in the NFL. The Lions give up only 65.9 yards per game on the ground. An important aspect of the game will be if the Lions can capitalize off of Tampa Bay’s propensity to give away the football. They currently rank 29th in the league with 2.1 turnovers per game. The Lions should try to take advantage of the slow-starting Buccaneers defense, who give up 6.8 points per game in the first quarter. Detroit can top most teams in terms of time of possession. The Lions have an average time of possession of 32:17 per game for fifth-highest in the league.
In the other locker room, the Buccaneers have 2-10 SU and 5-7 ATS records this season. The Buccaneers went 1-4 SU and 3-2 ATS over the last five games. Detroit will be matching up against a stout Buccaneers defense which has been playing better. They only allow 18 PPG over their last five matchups, well below their season average of 26.2. The Lions are matching up with Tampa Bay’s pass defense at an inopportune time. Over the last five games, opponents only averaged 189.4 yards through the air, lower than Tampa Bay’s season average of 245.8 yards. When Tampa Bay’s defensive front gets going, they are basically unstoppable. This year, the Buccaneers average three sacks per road game, good enough for fourth in the league.
Predictions: SU Winner – DET, ATS Winner – DET, O/U – Under
Notes
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Tampa Bay’s last 5 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Detroit’s last 11 games.
Tampa Bay is 1-7 SU in its last 8 games.
Detroit is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games.
Tampa Bay is 5-10 ATS in its last 15 games.
Detroit is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games.
Tampa Bay is 3-11 SU in its last 14 games on the road.
Detroit is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games at home.
Tampa Bay is 6-3 SU in its last 9 games when playing Detroit.
Detroit is 3-6 SU in its last 9 games when playing Tampa Bay.
Tampa Bay is 2-8 ATS in its last 10 games when playing Detroit.
Detroit is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Tampa Bay.
Tampa Bay is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Detroit.
Tampa Bay is 1-3 SU when leading at the half this season. Detroit is 6-1 SU when taking a lead into halftime.
Tampa Bay is 1-3 SU when leading at the start of the fourth quarter this season. Detroit is 5-1 SU when carrying a lead into the fourth quarter.
This season, Tampa Bay is 1-2 SU in games where it wins the turnover battle, and winless (0-5 SU) when losing the turnover battle.
This season, Detroit is only 1-2 SU in games where it loses the turnover battle.
Detroit is winless (0-6 SU) this season when allowing at least 3 sacks in a game. The Tampa Bay defense is averaging 3.2 sacks over its last five games.
The Tampa Bay defense has forced an average of 2.1 turnovers per game this season. Detroit is just 1-4 SU when turning the ball over at least 2 times in a game.
Tampa Bay has induced an average of 9.4 penalties per game on opponents over its last five games, while Detroit has drawn 8.2 per game on opponents over its last five games. Detroit is an even 2-2 SU this season when receiving at least 9 penalties in a game. Tampa Bay is only 2-6 SU when getting penalized at least 8 times.
When it comes to passing this season, Detroit is rated higher on both sides of the ball. Its ninth-ranked passing attack will face the 22nd-ranked pass defense of Tampa Bay, while its 12th-ranked pass defense will look to limit the 18th-ranked passing game of the Buccaneers.
The Detroit rushing attack is ranked only 30th in the league, while the Tampa Bay run defense is ranked 18th. The Buccaneers’ offensive run game is ranked just 29th, compared to the first-ranked rush defense of the Lions.
Tampa Bay has given up 27.8 points per game on the road, which is ranked only 23rd in the league. Detroit has scored 24.3 points per game at home (ranked 17th overall).
