The Carolina Panthers will travel to take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a Sunday afternoon NFL matchup at Raymond James Stadium. With that said, it’s a good time to check out our NFL odds series, which includes a Panthers-Buccaneers prediction and pick, laid out below.
Carolina has gone 6-9 this season, second place in the weakened NFC South, with an outside chance at the playoffs. After a 1-4 start chased Matt Rhule out of town, interim head coach Steve Wilks has enjoyed an even 5-5 record. Wins in three of their last four games has kept Carolina in contention.
Tampa Bay has gone 7-8 this season to sit in first place in the NFC South. Head coach Todd Bowles has gone 2-3 in his last five games, opening the door for the other NFC South teams. Two final games against division rivals allow Tampa Bay to control their destiny.
Here are the Panthers-Buccaneers NFL odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
NFL Odds: Panthers-Buccaneers Odds
Carolina Panthers: +3.5 (-104)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: -3.5 (-118)
Over: 40.5 (-110)
Under: 40.5 (-110)
Why The Panthers Could Cover The Spread
Sam Darnold has been good in his four starts, going 3-1. Most importantly, Darnold has thrown for 759 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions. On the ground, Darnold has rushed for two touchdowns. D'Onta Foreman leads the team with 811 rushing yards and five touchdowns. Chuba Hubbard is second on the team with 385 rushing yards, scoring two touchdowns. Carolina has rushed for 1,965 yards and 16 touchdowns, while Tampa Bay has allowed 1,804 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns to their opponents.
DJ Moore leads the team with 761 receiving yards and six touchdowns. Tommy Tremble is second on the team with two receiving touchdowns, the only other Panther with multiple touchdowns catches. Terrace Marshall, Jr. is second with 452 receiving yards. Carolina has averaged 20.9 points per game, which ranks 18th in the league.
Carolina's defense has been okay, ranking 19th with 22.5 points per game allowed. Brian Burns leads the team with 12.5 sacks, while Carolina has totaled 31 sacks. Tampa Bay has succeeded at keeping Tom Brady upright, only allowing 19 sacks. Carolina has intercepted 10 passes this season, while Brady has thrown nine.
Why The Buccaneers Could Cover The Spread
Even Tom Brady is not enough to turn around this season, although the veteran has thrown for 4,178 yards with 22 touchdowns and nine interceptions. Leonard Fournette leads the team with 640 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Rachaad White is second with 444 rushing yards and one touchdown, the only other Buc with a rushing touchdown. Carolina has allowed 3,495 passing yards to their opponents, the chosen attack for the Tampa Bay offense.
Mike Evans leads the team with 917 receiving yards, tied for second with three touchdown catches. Russell Gage leads the team with four touchdown catches. Fournette has totaled 500 receiving yards and three touchdowns out of the backfield. Chris Godwin ranks second with 848 receiving yards, also catching three touchdowns. Tampa Bay has averaged 17.7 points per game, which ranks 27th in the league.
The defense has been solid for Tampa Bay, allowing 20.3 points per game, which is seventh in the league. Tampa Bay's pass rush has been lethal, sacking their opponents 41 times, while Carolina has surrendered 32 sacks. Darnold has had issues with turnovers in the past, and Tampa Bay has picked off their opponents nine times.
Final Panthers-Buccaneers Prediction & Pick
Tampa Bay is playing for high stakes and will rely on their passing attack to defeat Carolina in this one.
Final Panthers-Buccaneers Prediction & Pick: Tampa Bay -3.5 (-104), over 40.5 (-110)