Sunday Night Football Betting Picks: Saints at Buccaneers
Finally, the NFL delivers a primetime affair worth watching as the top spot in the NFC South is up for grabs in Tampa Bay. Currently, atop the division, the Bucs add Antonio Brown to the fold as they welcome the New Orleans Saints. The Saints seem likely to return Michael Thomas just in time for the pivotal matchup. Here’s a preview with Sunday Night Football betting picks for the Saints at the Buccaneers.
Use the RotoGrinders odds tool to compare NFL Week 9 betting lines across the online sports betting industry and determine which sportsbook is best for your MNF betting picks.
Saints at Buccaneers NFL Betting Odds
62% of bets backing New Orleans and 79% on the under, per ScoresAndOdds.com.
Saints at Buccaneers SNF Betting Preview
The Buccaneers will get stronger in Week 9 as they welcome a stud receiver back to the fold… Chris Godwin. Okay. While Godwin is an emerging NFL star and likely to return on Sunday night, Antonio Brown makes his return to the league to play with Tom Brady in Tampa Bay. Brown played with Tom Brady for one game in 2019 and was an immediate focal point — recording four catches for 56 yards and a score on 8 targets. If you watched that game, whenever Brown was on the field, Brady looked his way, hoping to weave Brown into the offense immediately. Will Brown get the same treatment, tonight?
The Saints counter with a return of their own star wide receiver, Michael Thomas. Thomas — questionable at the time of this writing — seems poised to make his return as of most recent reports. 2020 has not been kind to Michael Thomas with injuries and eye-opening off-the-field issues. That said, when Thomas is on the field, he catches the football. With 149 receptions in 2019, Thomas will likely be the primary target and outlet for Drew Brees in a contest against the high-ranked Buccaneers’ defense. The Bucs’ defense is second in yards per play (4.8), first in rushing yards per attempt (3.2), and fourth in sack percentage (8.95%). Drew Brees will be under siege on the road and will be checking down a lot to Thomas and Alvin Kamara.
As mentioned in our previous Monday Night Football article, the Buccaneers feature a strong scoring offense to complement a championship-caliber defense. The Tom Brady-led offense averages 30.9 points per game and will play tonight’s game with all of the weapons accumulated PB (post-Brady). Leonard Fournette has taken over the running back snaps. Chris Godwin should return from his finger injury and Antonio Brown will be making his debut. Even if Tom Brady appears to be limited physically, he is certainly not limited in the weapons department. The Saints’s defense has been middling at best in 2020 and could be in for a long night considering the overload of assignments required to cover. Tom Brady is intriguing as a DFS single-game play given the difficulty requisite with pin-pointing which pass catcher will have the best game. Brady will be popular in a high-game total and at home — perhaps, Drew Brees would be a less-owned play to leverage high Brady ownership.
The spread opened at 4.5 points and spent a bit of time in the 5.5 regions prior to being bet back down to the opening 4.5 number. So, we basically didn’t miss anything, right?
Sunday Night Football Betting Picks
I think I am on the side of the betting numbers supplied by Scores and Odds and want to place a wager on the Saints, tonight. While Tom Brady and his band of offensive threats are tempting, a second divisional battle should stay pretty close throughout the game. Both offenses could enter the game at full health and should trade blows throughout the game. Given the array of weapons for Drew Brees and the ability for the Saints to pass the ball, I like the Saints to keep it close enough to win with 4.5 points. This game could end up being a classic — which would obviously favor a Saints’ bettor. I will take the 4.5 points and hope we see the same start from Tampa that we did on Monday Night. A come-from-behind victory at the last minute cannot hurt us. Good luck!
SNF Betting Pick: New Orleans Saints +4.5 (DraftKings)
Saints and Buccaneers Player Props
Michael Thomas Over 5.5 Receptions (-120)
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Assuming Thomas is officially active, I think he immediately slots back in as the top target for Drew Brees. Thomas only failed to cash on this number twice last season — one of which was Week 17. While I am not in love with the price, after this weekend, we will not see this type of receptions prop for Michael Thomas for the rest of the year. Thomas will likely be called upon frequently against a tough Tampa Bay defense that will pressure Drew Brees. Give me the over.
Antonio Brown Over 39.5 Receiving Yards (-112)
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To this point, Coach Bruce Arians is not taking a stand on how much time Antonio Brown will be on the field. If Brown is in shape, he will likely get enough snaps to draw some looks from Tom Brady. Tom Brady has never been shy about surrounding himself with the players he wants to throw to and Antonio Brown seemed fated to play with Brady again. I won’t be surprised if Brown is targeted when on the field enough to hit the over on this prop. Given the other weapons at the Bucs’ disposal, Brown won’t command the same type of attention he received in his heyday with the Steelers.
First Touchdown Picks
Here are my first touchdown picks for Sunday Night Football at DraftKings Sportsbook. DraftKings Sportsbook offers an opt-in promo for players to bet on a first touchdown and receive site credit (up to $20) if that player scores a touchdown at any point but doesn’t score first. I love the price on Michael Thomas given the chance at a rebate.
Alvin Kamara +700
Michael Thomas +1100
Ronald Jones +1050
Image Credit: Imagn