Buccaneers vs. Panthers
Buccaneers
Will the Fitz-Magic Return?
Ryan Fitzpatrick once again gets a chance to hold down the starting role at quarterback after he replaced Jameis Winston in the second half last week after Winston threw his four interception of the game (returned for a touchdown). Fitzpatrick did well as the starter in his first four weeks and in Tampa Bay’s high-octane offense is a fair bet to throw for 350+ yards, a few touchdowns, and an interception. Tampa Bay has the third most passing yards this season and are a good bet to go all in on their passing game.
Will Peyton Barber run for more than 10 carries?
Peyton Barber has slowly increased his workload over the past few weeks, punctuating Week Eight with a season-high 19 carries. Barber has been generally ineffective this season, rushing for 40 yards or more in a game only three times and snagging his only touchdown after a called back touchdown left the ball one the 1-yard line. Carolina has the sixth best run defense and Tampa Bay will likely be playing from behind – Barber will likely end up with only about 10 carries in Week Nine.
Stream any of Three
DeSean Jackson, Chris Godwin, and Adam Humphries have all had their time in the sun this season and none of them has been a consistent stand out week-to-week. Given Tampa Bay’s high-volume passing game, all three have FLEX potential each week although Jackson and Godwin should take priority as they have made the most of their target shares each week with Jackson grabbing one or two long balls and Godwin bringing in 3-4 mid yardage passes.
Back to 4
O.J. Howard dropped back to four targets in Week Eight, his season average per game. He once again made the most of it, bringing in four receptions for 68 yards and a touchdown. Howard should continue to see work and four targets a game seems to be a pretty consistent floor and should be a strong tight end play as Carolina has let up five touchdowns to tight ends, each against a different offense.
Boom Pick: O.J. Howard
Bust Pick: Adam Humphries
Sleeper Pick: Chris Godwin
-Brennen Gorman
Panthers
Can Cam shred the Bucs flimsy secondary?
Tampa Bay is allowing both the second most yards per pass attempt and yards per game (oddly enough, the only other team that’s top five in both is New Orleans), which is a major factor in why Football Outsiders has ranked them the worst pass defense in the NFL for their past and projected performance. While there were some questions surrounding QB Cam Newton’s shoulder prior to Thursday’s practice, he was a full participant yesterday, so there’s no reason to be bearish on the projections for Cam. Given that Tampa has only recorded one interception on the season, I’m not going out on a limb when I say Newton will go a third straight game with an infinite TD/INT ratio.
Will McCaffrey crack 50 yards rushing for the first time since Week 5?
ESPN’s algorithm thinks so, but it really is dependent on the game script. RB Christian McCaffrey is more of an all-purpose back than a pure runner anyway, so getting hung up on his rushing yard total is the wrong way to assess his production. By total yardage, McCaffrey actually had his worst game last week despite it being his fourth best game on the ground. When the opposing defense is the worst ranked in the NFL, it can be assumed they’re terrible at containing running backs in the passing game (Tampa is ranked 29th). The Bucs aren’t half bad at defending the run, only allowing 4.2 yards per attempt, but they do have the fourth highest touchdown to rush attempt ratio in the NFL. Regardless of how he’s utilized, McCaffrey should crack 100 total yards for the first time since Week 3.
Week 8 is to D.J. Moore as Week 9 is to __?
From a sheer replication of statistics, the most likely player to replicate WR D.J. Moore’s Week 8 performance is RB Christian McCaffrey. Understanding that the likelihood of a receiver rushing for 39 yards is super low, let’s focus on the receiving output. Which receiver will finish with the most targets and/or receiving yards? With the exception of the Bengals and Saints, tight ends have been at least the second highest producing receiving option against the Bucs this year. TE Greg Olsen has always been a favorite target of Cam, so I would say he receives the most targets among Carolina’s receiving options.
BOOM: TE Greg Olsen
BUST: WR Devin Funchess
SLEEPER: WR Curtis Samuel
-Alex Drennan