NFL Betting Odds
Sports Edge's football betting
preview of all 32 teams continues with the NFC
South's Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Tampa Bay is 30:1
to win the Super Bowl, 16:1 to win the NFC Championship,
and 10:3 to win the NFC South. The Buccaneers
were 11-5 last year.
Schedule
Tampa Bay’s 2006 opponents
had a record of 138-118 in 2005. That is tied
for the 2nd hardest schedule in the NFC. The Buccaneers
get their bye-week after Week 3.
Tampa Bay opens their
season against Baltimore at home, a game they
are favored by three points. It is a very tough
schedule overall, but at least they only have
one night game all year, and 14 of the 16 games
are 1:00 EST starts. That makes preparation much
easier for the coaching staff.
Sports Edge Analysis
Quarterback, Chris Simms
is the undisputed starter now that Brian Griese
has left for Chicago. Now, the Tampa coaching
staff will find out whether that is a good or
bad thing. Simms made great strides in his 3rd
NFL Season, but a shaky playoff performance against
Washington brings up his “big game”
ability that haunted him at the University of
Texas.
Helping Simms’ development
last year was the emergence of rookie running
back Cadillac Williams. Williams was sensational
at the start of the year, but wore down as the
season progressed. Still, he rushed for almost
1,200 yards, and he now better understands the
riggers of the NFL.
Simms’ receivers are
also a promising group. Joey Galloway had a career
year at 33 years-old last season. It is only natural
to expect a small drop-off in 2006 as he begins
to slow down a bit. Michael Clayton is the other
starter and he needs to bounce back after an off
year. Tight end, Alex Smith is a second year player
who will improve off a good rookie year.
Tampa Bay’s offensive
line has been put together with Scotch tape and
a lot of glue over the last couple of years. To
address that weakness, Coach Jon Gruden spent
their first two draft picks on guard Davin Joseph
and tackle Jeremy Trueblood. However, it will
take a while to fully integrate those players,
and this looks to be a slight weakness once again.
Tampa Bay’s defense
was 1st in the NFC in yards allowed last year,
and 4th in points allowed. The Buccaneers have
one of those defensive systems where they can
lose a key player or two, (see Warren Sapp and
John Lynch), and still produce at a high level.
The Bucs’ defensive
line is led by pass rusher Simeon Rice and his
14 sacks last year. Greg Spires is undersized,
but still has a burst on the other side. The team
made a smart move bringing in tackle Chris Hovan
last year. Hovan resurrected his career playing
next to Booger McFarland, and he should have another
good year.
Led by Derrick Brooks and
Shelton Quarles, the linebackers are fast and
smart. However, Brooks is now 33 years-old, so
age may start to become an issue. Ryan Nece is
the starter on the strong side, and he must continue
to play well as Marquis Cooper is right behind
him.
The secondary has two very
good cornerbacks in Ronde Barber and Brian Kelly.
The team is comfortable with Will Allen at free
safety and Jermaine Phillips is improving at strong
safety. Still, there have to be times when the
team wishes that John Lynch was still manning
the safety spot.
Prediction
The NFC East is the toughest
division in the conference, but the NFC South
is right behind them. Carolina is very good, Atlanta
is good, and New Orleans will be good pretty soon.
Tampa Bay is also in that
mix with a great defense and an offense that has
most of the necessary weapons. The key really
is Simms who has a ton of pressure on him to produce
in the regular season and the playoffs. A tough
schedule leaves them with a 9-7 mark, but that
may be good enough to get them into the post-season.
Click any of the following
teams for their NFL 2006 Betting Previews
49ers
2006 Betting Preview
Rams
2006 Betting Preview
Cardinals
2006 Betting Preview
Seahawks
2006 Betting Preview
Saints
2006 Betting Preview
Falcons
2006 Betting Preview
Buccaneers
2006 Betting Preview
Panthers
2006 Betting Preview
Packers
2006 Betting Preview
Vikings
2006 Betting Preview
Lions
2006 Betting Preview
Bears
2006 Betting Preview
Eagles
2006 Betting Preview
Redskins
2006 Betting Preview
Giants
2006 Betting Preview
Cowboys
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Raiders
2006 Betting Preview
Chargers
2006 Betting Preview
Broncos
2006 Betting Preview
Chiefs
2006 Betting Preview
Texans
2006 Betting Preview
Titans
2006 Betting Preview
Jaguars
2006 Betting Preview
Colts
2006 Betting Preview
Browns
2006 Betting Preview
Ravens
2006 Betting Preview
Bengals
2006 Betting Preview
Steelers
2006 Betting Preview
Patriots
2006 Betting Preview
Dolphins
2006 Betting Preview
Jets
2006 Betting Preview
Bills
2006 Betting Preview
Posted by miker at August
24, 2006 08:48 AM
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