Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. New Orleans Saints Predictions, Odds, Picks

VegasInsider Staff Sports Betting Expert

6 minute read

Oct. 31, 2021

Michael Crosson
VI Betting Expert
VegasInsider.com

The eighth week of regular-season NFL action will reach its peak Sunday mid-afternoon with America’s Game of the Week between Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Jameis Winston and the New Orleans Saints. Coverage begins at 4:25 p.m. ET on FOX.

Score Prediction

Buccaneers 24, Saints 20

Best Bets

Under

Tom Brady (TMB/QB) Over 0.5 INT

Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. New Orleans Saints Predictions

After jumping out to a solid 2-0 start with victories over the Cowboys and Falcons, Tampa Bay ran into a bit of a roadblock against L.A. in their third matchup, considering the Buccaneers’ offense racked up 446 YDS and didn’t turn the ball over against the new-look Rams in Week 3 – yet still lost that contest by a double-digit margin (L, 34-24).

Since losing in Week 3 though, it’s been nothing but smooth sailing for Brady and company, considering the Bucs’ enter Week 8 riding a commanding four-game winning streak (+71) – which includes victories Patriots, Dolphins, Eagles, and Bears.

On the other hand, New Orleans has ridden quite the roller coaster on offense since the retirement of Drew Brees, considering Saints opened the new season with impressive victories over the Packers and Patriots in Weeks 1 and 3 – and posted disappointing losses against the Panthers and Giants in Weeks 2 and 4 to open Winston’s tenure as signal-caller.

Since their rocky 2-2 start though, New Orleans has noticeably picked up the slack on the defensive side of the ball, considering the Saints surrendered just 16 PPG on 296 YPG across back-to-back victories over Seattle and Washington to launch them to 4-2.

I’ll take the under here, as the Saints have averaged just 20.4 PPG across their latest five-game window – and while New Orleans probably won’t win, this matchup should still remain competitive in that scoring ballpark.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. New Orleans Saints Betting Odds

More Odds | Futures Odds

The Buccaneers enter Sunday’s contest favored by roughly five points over the Saints at Caesar’s Superdome – marking just the third time New Orleans has been an underdog this season.

The total for Sunday’s affair is stationed just south of OU 50 at most shops, which marks the highest bar set for a Saints’ game so far this year.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. New Orleans Saints Betting Resources

• Matchup: NFC South
• Date: Sunday, October 31, 2021
• Venue: Caesars Superdome
• Location: New Orleans, Louisiana
• TV-Time: FOX - 4:25 p.m. ET

• Weather Report
• Injury Report
• Super Bowl 56 Betting

Tampa Bay Buccaneers Betting Analysis

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

• SU: 6-1
• ATS: 3-4
• O/U: 4-3
• ATS - Home: 3-1
• ATS - Away: 0-3

The Buccaneers’ offense looked absolutely phenomenal in Tampa Bay to start the season, considering Brady and company averaged 41.3 PPG on 443.3 YPG across their first three home games against the Cowboys, Falcons, and Dolphins.

The Bucs’ offensive numbers weren’t quite as impressive during their first three road games of the year though, considering Tampa scored just 23.7 PPG on 408.7 YPG across road matchups against the Rams, Patriots, and Eagles.

Many bettors will be hesitant to back the Bucs’ in this matchup due to their road woes up to this point – but in my opinion, Tampa Bay’s home-road skews seem to primarily stem from the difficulty of the individual matchup, rather than the contest’s physical location.

New Orleans Saints Betting Analysis

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

• SU: 4-2
• ATS: 3-3
• O/U: 2-4
• ATS - Home: 1-1
• ATS - Away: 2-2

Heading into this year, the Saints stood as somewhat of a wildcard amongst the playoff contenders in NFC, considering New Orleans retired an incredibly consistent, veteran quarterback this past offseason – and replaced him with the ultimate wildcard in Winston.

Winston’s style of play is still incredibly chaotic though, but it’s transformed into a slightly more controlled form of variability, considering the last time we saw Jameis starting, he led the league with 30 INT – and through six games of this season, he’s thrown just three.

The New Orleans Saints have covered the spread in seven of its last eight games when playing as underdogs. (AP)

Inside the Stats - Tampa Bay Buccaneers

• Record: 6-1
• Division Standing: 1st - NFC South
• Points Scored: 233
• Points Allowed: 147
• PS/G: 33.3 (3rd)
• PA/G: 21 (10th)

Inside the Stats - New Orleans Saints

• Record: 4-2
• Division Standing: 2nd - NFC South
• Points Scored: 140
• Points Allowed: 101
• PS/G: 23.3 (17th)
• PA/G: 16.8 (2nd)

Key Players to Watch

• TMB: Tom Brady - QB (203/303, 2,275 yards, 21 TD, 3 INT)
• TMB: Mike Evans - WR (37 catches, 496 yards, 7 TD)
• NOR: Jameis Winston - QB (89/151, 1,114 yards, 13 TD, 3 INT)
• NOR: Alvin Kamara - RB (114 carries, 419 yards, 5 Total TDs)

Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. New Orleans Saints Betting Conclusion

After squeaking out a victory in Seattle last week (W, 13-10), the Saints will head into Week 8 as roughly five-point underdogs against the visiting Buccaneers – marking just the second time Tampa Bay has been favored by less than six points this season.

I’ll take the under here, as the Saints’ offense averaged just 13.7 PPG and turned the ball over four times during their trio of low-scoring defensive battles against the Seahawks, Giants, and Panthers – but their defense should be able to keep things competitive in this one, which is why I’m also backing Brady to throw his fourth pick of the year in Sunday’s affair.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. New Orleans Saints Betting Trends

• Tampa Bay has won 14 of its last 15 games.
• New Orleans has covered the spread in seven of its last eight games when playing as the underdog.
• New Orleans has gone UNDER the point total in six straight divisional games.
• New Orleans has covered the spread in four of its last five games when facing Tampa Bay.

Where to place a bet this NFL Season?

• Use our exclusive BetMGM Bonus Code VIBONUS1500 to unlock BetMGM’s welcome offer for new sportsbook users!
• Compare the latest NFL Odds from the best sportsbooks before placing a bet on this week's games.
• Check out the North Carolina Sportsbooks just before they launch legal online sports betting.

VegasInsider Staff

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