The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will travel to the desert to face off with the Arizona Cardinals for a Sunday Night Christmas special. It's time to continue our NFL Christmas Odds series with a Buccaneers-Cardinals prediction and pick.

The Buccaneers lost 34-23 last weekend as they failed to hold onto a two-score lead. Tom Brady completed 30 of 44 passes for 312 yards, three touchdowns, and two interceptions, with one fumble lost. Additionally, Leonard Fournette rushed 10 times for 44 yards while catching four passes for 30 yards. Rachad White rushed 11 times for 38 yards. Also, Mike Evans caught five passes for 83 yards, while Chris Godwin caught eight for 83 yards and a score. Russell Gage added eight catches for 59 yards and two touchdowns. Meanwhile, Lavonte David contributed on defense with one sack.

The Cardinals lost 24-15 to the Denver Broncos at Empower Field. Unfortunately, Colt McCoy left with a concussion. Trace McSorley completed 7 of 15 passes for 95 yards and tossed two interceptions. Meanwhile, James Conner rushed 16 times for 63 yards and a score. DeAndre Hopkins caught seven passes for 60 yards.

The Bucs are 2-3 over the last five games and 2-4 on the road. Meanwhile, the Cards are 1-4 over their previous five and 1-7 at home. The Cardinals lead the all-time series 11-10. Additionally, the Cards are 6-3 in nine lifetime home games against the Bucs, with the last game occurring in 2017.

Brady is 1-1 in his lifetime against the Cards. Significantly, he has made one regular season appearance in Arizona but played two Super Bowls in the desert.

Here are the Buccaneers-Cardinals NFL Christmas odds, courtesy of FanDuel. 

NFL Christmas Odds: Buccaneers-Cardinals Odds

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: -7.5 (-118)

Arizona Cardinals: +7.5 (-104)

Over: 39.5 (-118)

Under: 38.5 (-104)

Why The Buccaneers Could Cover The Spread

Life has not gone well for the Buccaneers this season. Unfortunately, injuries and bad play from the offensive line have contributed to numerous struggles.

Brady has completed 66 percent of his passes with a quarterback rating of 89.1. Moreover, he has 3897 passing yards, 20 touchdowns, and seven interceptions. Brady is well below his yearly averages and must do more to help propel the Bucs to the playoffs. Ultimately, he needs help, and that is where the running game comes in.

Fournette has rushed 159 times for 568 yards and three touchdowns on a 3.6 yards-per-carry rate. Meanwhile, White has rushed 107 times for 408 yards and one touchdown. Evans has 64 receptions for 888 yards and three touchdowns, while Godwin has 81 catches for 785 yards and three scores. Additionally, tight end Cade Otton has 37 catches for 357 yards and two scores. Russell Gage has 40 receptions for 313 yards and four scores.

The defense has dealt with numerous injuries. Significantly, they are already without top pass-rusher Shaq Barrett. Defensive tackle Vita Vea will not play this week against the Cards, making things tougher. However, Davis is still around and has 65 solo tackles and three sacks. Devin White has 62 solo tackles and 5.5 sacks. Meanwhile, the secondary has had an up-and-down season. Carlton Davis III has 49 solo tackles and only one interception.

Turnovers and bad field position doomed the Bucs last week. Therefore, Brady and the entire offense must do a better job of holding onto the ball and keeping drives alive.

The only way the Bucs cover the spread will be if they run the ball effectively and relieve some pressure off Brady. Moreover, it will allow Brady more time to throw when the defense is not playing the pass.

Why The Cardinals Could Cover The Spread

The Cardinals are looking to next year, especially with yet another injury to Kyler Murray. Unfortunately, he was not able to have success this year and the Cards never meshed.

McSorley is the starting quarterback this week and making his first career start. How will he do? It is a legitimate question, as he will be under scrutiny against a Tampa defense that has not played to their potential this year. Additionally, Conner is main man in the desert after returning from an injury a few weeks ago. He has rushed 152 times for 624 yards and six touchdowns while averaging 4.1 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Hopkins has 63 receptions for 713 yards and three touchdowns, while Marquise Brown has 57 catches for 584 yards and three scores.

The defense has not done well, with plenty of issues. However, JJ Watt is doing okay with 21 solo tackles and 9.5 sacks, while Zach Allen has 23 solo tackles and 5.5 sacks.

The Cardinals will cover the spread if they can run the ball efficiently and stop the run. Additionally, they must pressure Brady into making mistakes as the Bengals did.

Final Buccaneers-Cardinals Prediction & Pick

In a logical world, the Buccaneers would beat the Cardinals 31-10, especially against a third-string quarterback. However, these Bucs are struggling to score and not running the ball efficiently. Therefore, the spread is too much to trust Tampa to cover.

Final Buccaneers-Cardinals Prediction & Pick: Arizona Cardinals: +7.5 (-104)