The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are hosting the Philadelphia Eagles in the Wild Card on Monday January 15th on ESPN.
The Eagles open as 3 point road favorites according to Pennsylvania sportsbooks to begin the week. The line could change of course, but it was predictably given out in Philly’s favor. However, the past six weeks the Eagles are 1-5 and have lost 2 straight. Luckily for them, they get the winner of the NFC South which has been the worst division in the NFL. Given the fact that the Eagles are trending downward, who’s to say that the Bucs should be favored closer to game time?
It’s been two different seasons for Philly 😬 pic.twitter.com/xqczvV1xe5
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 8, 2024
This might be the case for that or as close as a “Pick Em” by the time next Monday rolls around. The Eagles are really beat up with injuries at the wrong time. Most notably, Philly’s top two wide receivers A.J. Brown and Devonta Smith are both questionable to play. Smith missed week 18 with an ankle injury while Brown hurt his knee in their loss to the Giants yesterday. If one or both cannot go then the Eagles will have a tough time throwing the ball even against the one of the league’s worst pass defenses. Also quarterback Jalen Hurts is dealing with a finger injury, but luckily it was not anything too serious. He should suit up for Monday’s game.
Should Tampa Be Favored?
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have been kind of up and down themselves, but have shown to be a lot more fluid than the Eagles in the past month. They have been the inverse of the Eagles and have won 5 of their last 6 games. Even though they did not play their best football against the Carolina Panthers, the Bucs held their own despite only scoring 9 points. Playing at home is a huge boost and there are not many injuries of note. However, quarterback Baker Mayfield did seem hobbled for much of that game, but he’s as tough as they come and should play.
The way these two teams have been playing recently there is a good argument to be made that the Buccaneers should be favored. Given the track record of both teams, it seems like the sportsbooks trust Philadelphia Eagles and Jalen Hurts more than Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
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