Los Angeles Rams (3-4) vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-5)
November 6, 2022 4:25 pm EDT
The Line: Tampa Bay Buccaneers -3 / Los Angeles Rams +3; Over/Under: 42.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Los Angeles Rams square off Sunday in week 9 NFL action from Raymond James Stadium. Los Angeles is 3-4 so far and coming off a loss to the 49ers. As for the Buccaneers, they’re sitting at 3-5 following a loss to the Ravens last Thursday. Check back all season long for free NFL picks at Sports Chat Place.
Los Angeles went 2-3 over their first five games this year, beating the Falcons and Cardinals while otherwise falling to the Bills, 49ers and Cowboys. The Rams stopped the bleeding with a win over the Panthers, but then fell to the 49ers again last weekend.
In the 49ers game on Sunday, the Rams had a 14-10 lead going into halftime. Los Angeles fell apart in the second half and was outscored 21-0 on the way to a 31-14 loss. QB Matthew Stafford put up 187 yards and a TD, while Cooper Kupp caught eight balls for 79 yards and a TD.
Over on the Buccaneers’ side, they went 3-2 over their first five games. The wins were versus the Cowboys, Saints and Falcons; the losses came to the Packers and Chiefs. Tampa Bay would then hit a losing streak, falling to the Steelers, Panthers and Ravens.
Last Thursday versus the Ravens, Tampa Bay went into halftime with a 10-3 lead. The Buccaneers were outscored 24-12 from there in a 27-22 loss. QB Tom Brady threw for 325 yards and a TD; Leonard Fournette had 24 rush yards and a score as well.
The Rams are 6-2 ATS in their last eight after a double-digit loss at home and 4-9 ATS in their last 13 after an ATS loss. LA is 2-5 ATS in their last seven versus the NFC.
Meanwhile, the Bucs are 0-6 ATS in their last six overall and 0-5 ATS in their last five after an ATS loss. Tampa is 0-7 ATS in their last seven on grass.
PICK: I’m going to take a stab on the Buccaneers, even though they haven’t been great against the spread this year. Tampa coughed up a lot of offense to the Ravens in their last game, including a whopping 231 rush yards and 27 first downs. That result left Tom Brady and company off the field for all but 21:37 in time of possession. The Bucs defense is going to have to sharpen up for this one.
As for LA, they came up with just 223 yards of offense and 16 firs downs in the San Francisco loss. That said, I like the Rams to bounce back with a decent effort here in a close game. Should be a fun matchup, but I think the Bucs can pull it out.
