by Chuck Sommers
Friday, Nov 19, 2021
Game time: 8:15 p.m. ET
Venue: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, FL
Where to watch: ESPN
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Buccaneers -11
BetMGM: Buccaneers -10.5
Caesars: Buccaneers -11
Season record
Giants: 3-6 (Last place, NFC East)
Buccaneers: 6-3 (1st place, NFC South)
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Giants - Buccaneers preview and analysis
Last week
Giants: Bye (won 23-16 vs. Raiders in Week 9)
Buccaneers: lost 29-19 at Washington
It has not been a fun few weeks for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Good things may soon be on the horizon in the form of playing the New York Giants.
The defending Super Bowl champions will try to avoid a three-game losing streak when they host the Giants on Monday Night Football and keep pace with their lead in the NFC South.
After a 6-1 start in which the Bucs were one of the top teams in the NFC, two straight losses at the New Orleans Saints and the Washington Football Team have made the NFC South race more enticing than it should be.
Tom Brady threw two first-quarter interceptions and the Bucs fell behind 16-6 at halftime. Tampa Bay cut it to 4 with 10:55 remaining off a 40-yard score to Mike Evans. But Washington responded with a dominant 19-play, 80-yard drive that took 10:26 off the clock for the game-ending touchdown with 29 seconds left.
The Bucs had only 273 total yards and held the ball for 20:52 to only 14 first downs.
"Not a great day of football for us," said Brady, who threw two interceptions for the second consecutive game. "We just never really played on our terms. We played from behind the whole game, and they played a good game."
The good news is the Bucs return home where Brady has been spectacular this season. He’s averaging 319.3 yards per home game (four starts) and is looking for his fourth straight home game of at least four touchdown passes. He’s three touchdown passes from tying Brett Favre and Peyton Manning for the second-most seasons of at least 30 touchdown passes (nine seasons) in NFL history.
But if there’s an opponent to get back on track against, it’s the Giants even though the past two weeks have seen the boys in blue play the Kansas City Chiefs close, and outright defeating the Las Vegas Raiders who had been through a ton of trouble over the past few weeks.
The Giants did get an extra week to plan for the Bucs, but will need to have a much better output from quarterback Daniel Jones (110 yards, one touchdown) and can’t rely on just that defense to be the end-all, be-all for that group.
"I had a feeling they were going to step up," tight end Engram said. "The defense has been playing lights out the past three weeks."
The Giants have weapons at their disposal, like Engram for example, who caught his 15th career touchdown reception against the Raiders. The last time he faced the Bucs, Engram had six receptions for 113 yards and a touchdown in Tampa. The last time the Giants were in Tampa, Sterling Shepard also had seven receptions for 100 yards and a touchdown. Saquon Barkley won’t be an option, but would he have helped anyway?
In short, there’s a chance for the Giants to do something. But they won’t because they’re the Giants.
Prediction
There’s no reason to think Tampa Bay won’t rebound here. In the pantheon of greatness in the National Football League, the Giants are not among them. It’s been a valiant last few games, but the luck will run out this time. If you trust Jones to win you a football game on offense even after the bye week, I don’t know what to tell you. Buccaneers by 14
Betting trends
The Giants are 6-1 ATS the past three seasons when a road dog between 7.5 and 14 points.
The Giants are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 off a non-conference game.
The Buccaneers are 6-7 ATS as a home favorite the past three seasons.
The Bucs are 0-6 ATS in their last six NFC East games.
Statistical leaders
Giants:
Passing: Daniel Jones -- 2,059 yards, 8 TD, 5 INT
Rushing: Devontae Booker -- 315 yards, 2 TD
Receiving: Kadarius Toney -- 352 yards
Defense: Xavier McKinney -- 4 INT
Buccaneers:
Passing: Tom Brady -- 2,870 yards, 27 TD, 7 INT
Rushing: Leonard Fournette -- 486 yards, 4 TD
Receiving: Chris Godwin -- 717 yards, 4 TD
Defense: Devin White -- 79 tackles
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Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
