2016 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Expert Predictions and Season Win Totals Picks

2016 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Expert Predictions and Season Win Totals Picks

by Robert Ferringo - 9/9/2016

2015 Record: 6-10

2016 Las Vegas Season Win Total: 7.5

2016 Season Win Total Prediction: 'Over'

When I look at Tampa Bay, I see a lot of style but not a lot of substance. The Bucs haven't finished above .500 since 2010, and with a new coach and some new systems it appears their decade-long rebuild may still be ongoing. Add in the fact that the Bucs are in a division featuring more experienced coaches and quarterbacks and more established systems, and I think it is a tall task to ask Tampa to move up in the standings.

But then again, this is the NFC South. And worst-to-first has been the mantra in this division since the league's expansion. So there is always hope.

I am still not a big fan of Jameis Winston. I think he is too reckless and careless with the ball and not nearly as mobile as he needs to be behind a shoddy offensive line. Tampa Bay's phenomenal crop of skill players does bail out Winston. Vincent Jackson, Mike Evans and Doug Martin are as talented of a trio of backs and receivers as there is in the NFL and a reason why Tampa Bay is a dangerous team to bet against on any given week.

But Tampa Bay's defense is a reason to be wary of throwing your money behind this team as well. The Bucs are transitioning from Lovie Smith's Cover-2 scheme. New defensive coordinator Mike Smith, formerly the head coach in Atlanta, is a defensive whiz. Smith has a solid front seven to work with, specifically with Gerald McCoy and Kwon Alexander. But Tampa's secondary has been a disaster for years, and any team that starts Chris Conte at safety is going to have major problems in the back end.

Tampa Bay is dangerous this year. If Smith can fix the defense then they have enough playmakers to cause all kinds of problems. However, I feel like this season win total is a Rorschach test on Winston. If you think that he is a future franchise quarterback then get on the bandwagon early. But if you still think he will be as erratic as he was last season then the 'under' is the play.

I'm not high on Winston. But I know value when I see it. I will buy in early and play 'over'.

Buccaneers Regular Season Schedule (All times Eastern)

WEEK	DATE	OPPONENT	TIME (ET)	Location	Result
1	Sun, Sep 11th, 2016	at Atlanta	01:00 PM	Georgia Dome
2	Sun, Sep 18th, 2016	at Arizona	04:05 PM	U. of Phoenix Stadium
3	Sun, Sep 25th, 2016	Los Angeles	04:05 PM	Raymond James Stadium
4	Sun, Oct 2nd, 2016	Denver	04:05 PM	Raymond James Stadium
5	Mon, Oct 10th, 2016	at Carolina	08:30 PM	Bank of America Stadium
6	Bye
7	Sun, Oct 23rd, 2016	at San_Francisco	04:05 PM	Levi's Stadium
8	Sun, Oct 30th, 2016	Oakland	01:00 PM	Raymond James Stadium
9	Thu, Nov 3rd, 2016	Atlanta	08:25 PM	Raymond James Stadium
10	Sun, Nov 13th, 2016	Chicago	01:00 PM	Raymond James Stadium
11	Sun, Nov 20th, 2016	at Kansas_City	01:00 PM	Arrowhead Stadium
12	Sun, Nov 27th, 2016	Seattle	04:05 PM	Raymond James Stadium
13	Sun, Dec 4th, 2016	at San_Diego	04:25 PM	Qualcomm Stadium
14	Sun, Dec 11th, 2016	New_Orleans	01:00 PM	Raymond James Stadium
15	Sun, Dec 18th, 2016	at Dallas	01:00 PM	AT&T Stadium
16	Sat, Dec 24th, 2016	at New_Orleans	01:00 PM	Mercedes-Benz Superdome
17	Sun, Jan 1st, 2017	Carolina	01:00 PM	Raymond James Stadium

Robert Ferringo is one of the top football handicappers in the country and tallied an unrivaled $20,800 in football profit between 2011 and 2015, including his amazing 2013 NFL season in which he hit 62.1 percent (95-58). Robert has produced 14 of 22 winning football months and an amazing 37 of 57 winning football months over the past decade. Robert has hit nearly 60 percent winners over his last 750 totals picks and is the most prolific big play football handicapper in the nation, going 101-63 (62%) on all football plays rated 5.0 or higher since 2010. Also, Robert's proprietary KING College Football Betting System has posted three of four winning seasons and is 122-92 over the last three years (57.0 percent).

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Pick:	CHICAGO BEARS +3
Start:	November 24, 2024 @ 1:00 PM
Expert:	Doc's Sports

Analysis:

Free Play from Doc’s Sports. Take #256 Chicago Bears +3 over Minnesota Vikings (1p.m., Sunday, November 24 FOX) We used the Bears as a free play winner last Sunday and easily covered the spread and should have been an underdog outright winner. Now we will ride them for a second straight week against another NFC North rival, the Minnesota Vikings. The Vikings are 8-2 on the season, yet are only around a field goal favorite. I still do not trust Sam Donald to win consistently over the course of a 17 game regular season. Minnesota is not as good as their 8-2 record would indicate and playing outdoors in Chicago on Sunday will cause issues for them on both sides of the ball. Chicago has been hit or miss this season, but they will be up to play another divisional rival and we expect them to take this down to the wire as well. Do not miss out on Doc’s Sports Weekend Card featuring top plays in college and NFL football. Read More Read Less

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