My feeling is that the Buccaneers will bounce back this week against the Vikings. Despite how bleak it looks in Tampa Bay, I’m willing to make that bet.
It also looks bad in New York for the Giants and also meh for the Titans, which is why I can’t trust those offenses.
Let’s dive into how I’m wagering on NFL Week 3.
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Vikings @ Buccaneers
The Vikings are 2-0 after beating both the Green Bay Packers in Week 1 and the Bears in Week 2.
Did you hear the Bears have the best offense in the NFL? Well, not after they played the Vikings, who limited them to only three points in a game where the Bears made a ton of mistakes. Chicago went 0-3 in the red zone with a costly fumble late in the game.
Now the 2-0 Vikings — who, by the way, look unstoppable — head to the lowly Bucs who are 0-2 after losses to the Bengals and Browns.
The Bucs may be bad. They are older. Mayfield doesn’t look great. They have a new offensive coordinator and it looks disjointed at times on that side of the ball.
Can Baker Mayfield lead his Bucs to a win in Week 3? (Getty Images)
However, this is the perfect spot to wager on them.
All the players and staff know what happens if they go to 0-3. The season is done. Since the NFL expanded to 14 playoff teams in 2020, only a single team has made the playoffs after starting 0-3 and it won’t be the Bucs if it does happen.
The Vikings have Kyler Murray returning to the lineup and he played only a few snaps before getting hurt. I wonder how crisp he’s going to be in his first real time on the field with this offense.
This just feels like a classic NFL spot where the 0-2 team makes it happen against the 2-0 team who’s playing well.
Schwartz’s Pick: Buccaneers +1.5
Titans @ Giants
Give me the Under in this game featuring Jamies Winston at quarterback for the Giants and a poor Titans offense on the other side of the field.
Add in the potential rain and wind from a storm and scoring in MetLife Stadium feels unlikely.
Jamies Winston’s arm looked dead in this appearance against the Rams on Monday night after Jaxson Dart went out. And that was Winston being healthy and in perfect condition. Now it’s outside in the wind.
The Titans defense has been middle of the pack this season and should be able to stop a Winston-led offense. Giants’ receiver Malik Nabers got beat up against the Rams but he did return to the game. Is he completely healthy for this team?
Left tackle Andrew Thomas is beat up also.
The Giants offense could have a long road ahead. (Getty Images)
I don’t like the Giants offense in his game.
New York’s defensive line, on the other hand, should torture the Titans offensive line. They are going to force Cam Ward into mistakes and make him uncomfortable. The Titans are only 26th in yards per play and they scored 10 points against the Jets in Week 1 and only 20 against Philly.
It’s worth mentioning they scored one of the touchdowns last weekend after a 90-yard interception return which gave the offense the ball on the 10.
