Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Washington Football Team Matchup Preview 1/9/21: Betting Odds, Depth Charts, Live Stream

The prize winner of the NFC East eventually ended up being the Washington Football Team. They will welcome the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this week, who have a favorable draw despite not winning their division. The Buccaneers are large favorites this week, as you would expect, but there will be plenty of people talking about the Washington pass-rush and how it will be for Tom Brady. That has been the case all year long where the Bucs offense has stalled against better pass-rushes. However, Washington will need to find a way to put up some points regardless, and that has been a tough task for them all year long, ranking 25th in points per game. There is a great chance the winner of this game goes to Lambeau to take on the Packers next round. The only way that doesn’t happen is if the Rams or Bears win this weekend. As the week leads up to the game, we will need to monitor Mike Evans’s status. Who left last week’s game but dodged a major injury. For odds movement and full matchup history, visit the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Washington Football Team Matchup Page.

TV Schedule

Date: Sunday, January 10th, 2021
Time: 8:15pm ET
Location: FedExField – Landover, MD
Coverage: NBC

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Washington Football Team Live Stream

You can stream this game, and many other NFL games live online with Hulu. Hulu has a 7 Day free trial and is cheaper than cable options at $5.99/month. Watch Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Washington Football Team Free Online Now.

Injury Report

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Carlton Davis (Q), Jason Pierre Paul (Q), Mike Evans (Q), Devin White (O)
Washington Football Team: Terry McLaurin (Q), Antonio Gibson (Q), Alex Smith (Q), Brandon Scherff (Q)

Tampa Bay Buccaneers Analysis

Tampa rolls into the playoffs riding high, and they have averaged 30.8 point sper game on the year and held opponents to just 22.2. This is certainly impressive in an NFC South division, but the Buccaneers defense continues to get better and better each year. The run defense has been a major force over the last two seasons, holding teams to just 80.6 rushing yards per game and 3.6 yards per carry in 2020. The pass defense has gotten better, allowing 29 passing touchdowns this season and forcing 15 interceptions. We knew the offense would put up numbers, and Tom Brady did just that with 4,633 passing yards and 40 touchdowns. The storyline will be all week, how he does against better than average pass rushes, because he has not fared well against them over the last few seasons. Mike Evans had a strong year with over 1,000 yards and 13 touchdowns, while Chris Godwin and Rob Gronkowski had seven apiece. Overall the Buccaneers loaded offense all chipped in as expected, but Ronald Jones has been tremendous this year, averaging 5.1 yards per carry and had 978 yards in 14 games.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers Depth Chart

QB: Tom Brady
RB1: Ronald Jones
RB2: Leonard Fournette
WR1: Mike Evans
WR2: Chris Godwin
WR3: Antonio Brown
TE: Rob Gronkowski

Washington Football Team Analysis

It was an ugly year for the Washington Football Team, but luckily for them, it was uglier for the rest of the NFC East. They will welcome Tampa and face a team loaded with weapons. The defense has been great this season and has kept them in games where they shouldn’t have been in them this season. That could be the case again this week. They held teams to 20.6 points per game this season but only scored 20.9 on their own. Against the run this year, they allowed a bit more production just due to the flow of games but still ranked in the top half against the run. Against the pass, they held teams to just 191 yards per game and 21 touchdowns. Of course, some of this can be attributed to playing in the NFC East, but this defense is talented. The quarterback play has not been good, but Alex Smith gives them their best chance to win. Dwayne Haskins is no longer with the team, and we have seen names from Kyle Allen to Taylor Heinicke take over. Ron Rivera has talked about using a rotation, and a quick hook could be in line. Despite the injury tags, both Antonio Gibson and Terry McLaurin are expected to suit up. Both led the team in rushing and receiving yards this season, and any absence on their part would give Washington no chance.

Washington Football Team Depth Chart

QB: Alex Smith
RB1: Antonio Gibson
RB2: JD McKissic
WR1: Terry McLaurin
WR2: Steven Sims
WR3: Cam Sims
TE: Logan Thomas

Betting Corner: Buccaneers -8.5

Spread: TB -8.5
Moneyline: TB -420 / WAS +310
Over/Under: 45.5

I can’t recall a road team being favored this much in the playoffs, but given the circumstances of this season and how it transpired to get this matchup, it makes all the sense in the world. The line opened at -7.5 but now has gotten up to -8 or more for most sportsbooks. Tampa will come into this one with a four-game winning streak but face the Falcons twice, the Lions, and Vikings. The Washington defense is certainly interesting as they rank top-three against the pass and have held opponents to 20 or fewer points over the second half of the season. There is a great chance this game is lower scoring, and that is what I would be betting in comparison to the spread. This should be a pretty ugly and defensive game, even with the Bucs offense putting up late points. They will be able to put some pressure and match up with their passing attack, which would take a hit if Mike Evans can’t go. Overall the under is the pick here.

Daily Fantasy Picks

Whether you are playing the full weekend slate or just Saturday, you can use a few options from this game. It is a smaller slate, so in large-field tournaments, do not be afraid to take some more risks or leave money on the table. The Washington defense allowed just 235 passing yards per game this season and was strong against the pass overall. Getting pressure on Brady will be key. I think I rather fade in this spot and look more towards the other quarterbacks on this slate. Getting exposure to the passing game can be done through targeting the wide receivers or Rob Gronkowski. We don’t know if Evans is out yet, but Chris Godwin and Antonio Brown would get a bigger bump. Gronk would also be used heavily in the red zone, and Washington has allowed 0.85 touchdowns per game to tight ends this season. The Buccaneers defense is fairly solid, but Terry McLaurin would be the option to use in this spot, as the Bucs ranked bottom-ten in fantasy points allowed to wide receivers. As far as the backs go, both run defenses in the regular season were not teams I targeted. However, Antonio Gibson and Ronald Jones are in play if you are looking to differ.