Bucs vs Panthers Week 16 Gambling Preview
Carolina (5-9) QB Cam Newton should break Peyton Manning’s rookie passing yards record and there is a good chance he will do it in this game facing a Tampa Bay (4-10) team that has lost 8 straight games, has only won 1 road game this season, and has one of the worst pass defenses in the league.
Venue/ Stadium: Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, NC
Time/Date: 1 PM EST Saturday, December 24, 2011
NCAA Odds From: BetOnline.com
Moneyline: Bucs +300 / Panthers -360
Spread (ATS): Panthers -7.5
Over/Under: 47.5
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Carolina Panthers Preview
One of the main reasons the Panthers have won 3 of their last 4 games is Newton has avoided the INT with only 2 in the last 4 games.
In their last games the Panthers beat the Houston Texans 28-13 while the Bucs lost to the Dallas Cowboys 31-15.
On the season Tampa Bay is 4-10 ATS with an Over/Under record of 8-6 and Carolina is at 8-6 ATS with an Over/Under record of 8-6.
The Panthers already beat the Bucs this season 38-19 in a game in Tampa Bay where Newton rushed for 3 TD. He has one of the best WR’s in the NFL in Steve Smith, who has the 3rd most receiving yards in the league. The Bucs rank 26th in the league in pass defense and in their loss to the Cowboys last week they allowed Tony Romo to pass for 249 yards with 3 TD and 0 INT.
The Bucs only rank 30th in the league in run defense and they not have to worry about Newton, but RB DeAngelo Williams as well. Tampa Bay’s defense has been horrible for the last couple of months and unless they turn things around their struggling offense may have to light up the scoreboard for them to have any chance to win this NFC South match up.[soliloquy id=”82219″]
Bucs’ QB Josh Freeman has failed to pass for over 200 yards in his last 3 games and he has a decent WR corps and TE Kellen Winslow and will be facing a Carolina pass defense that ranks 18th in the league.
Not only has Freeman been stinking it up, but also RB LeGarrette Blount only has 114 rushing yards in his last 3 games and in their last loss to the Cowboys he had a grand total of 21 yards averaging 2.3 yards per carry. However, the Panthers only have the league’s 25th ranks run defense and to snap out of their slump Blount will need to have a good game.
Betting Trends
Tampa Bay is 1-4 ATS in their last 5 road games, 0-4 ATS in their last 4 games, and they have an Under record of 6-1 in their last 7 games as an underdog of 3.5-10 points.
Carolina is 5-2 ATS in their last 7 games as a favorite and they have an Under record of 4-0 in their last 4 home games against teams with a losing road record.
Jason’s Pick: The Panthers are at home and coming off a big away win and the Bucs are reeling playing bad on both sides of the ball. Yeah, not a tough pick, as the Panthers will win and cover the spread. Since neither team really has a good defense the posted total will go Over in this game.
