Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs Cincinnati Bengals 12/18/22 NFL Picks, Predictions, Odds
Cincinnati Bengals (9-4) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-7)
December 18, 2022 4:25 pm EDT
The Line: Tampa Bay Buccaneers +3.5 / Cincinnati Bengals -3.5; Over/Under: +42.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Cincinnati Bengals and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers meet Sunday in NFL action from Raymond James Stadium. Cincinnati comes into this game at 9-4 overall. The Bengals beat the Browns in their last appearance. As for Tampa Bay, they’re 6-7 this year and coming off a loss to the 49ers. Check back all season long for free NFL picks at Sports Chat Place.
Cincinnati posted a 4-3 run over their first seven games. The Bengals beat the Jets, Dolphins, Saints and Falcons during that stretch. Since then it’s been a 5-1 run for Cincinnati with wins over the Panthers, Steelers, Titans, Chiefs and Browns in succession.
On Sunday versus the Browns, Cincinnati took a 20-10 lead into the fourth quarter. The Bengals were able to hang on and won it 23-10. Joe Burrow put up 239 yards with two scores and a pick; Joe Mixon added 96 rush yards on 14 carries.
Over on the Bucs’ side, they were just 3-5 through eight games, losing to the Packers, Chiefs, Steelers, Panthers and Ravens. Tampa Bay has gone 3-2 since then with victories over the Rams, Seahawks and Saints.
Last weekend versus the 49ers, the Buccaneers took their worst loss of the year. Tampa Bay was down 28-0 by the break and limped to a 35-7 defeat. QB Tom Brady put up one TD with two picks and 253 yards. Chris Godwin led the receivers on 54 yards from five grabs.
The Bengals are 4-0 ATS in their last four in December and 8-1 ATS in their last nine on grass. Cincinnati is 4-1 ATS versus a team with a losing record.
Meanwhile, the Bucs are 14-6-2 ATS in their last 22 in December and 1-6-1 ATS in the last eight at home. Tampa is 1-9-1 ATS in their last 11 overall.
PICK: I’ll probably stay with Cincinnati. The Bengals looked pretty good in their last matchup versus the Browns, notching 363 total yards (227 passing), 6.0 yards per play and 23 first downs. Cincinnati has scored pretty consistently during this five-game win streak with 20 or more points in every game and 27 or more in three of them.
As for Tampa Bay, they just didn’t have it last weekend versus a pretty good San Francisco team. The Bucs finished with 322 yards (253 passing), 18 first downs and three turnovers. Tampa has scored 17 or fewer points in four of their last five games (21 in the outlier). If they can’t find an offensive rhythm quickly here I don’t think they’ll stay in range long.
