Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ New Orleans Saints Point Spread Pick

Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ New Orleans Saints Point Spread Pick: The Buccos set out to get 10 wins, and despite the Saints’ hopes to win big and watch the Falcons lose so they could walk away with a bye, those chances are slim and none and slim just ate an entire pizza, a cheese steak sandwich, and a power bar – morphing him into fat chance. Bad? Yeah, I thought so. But hey, sometimes you just have to go with it. Fat chance being considered, I actually think the Bucs have more to play for here. They could actually walk away with a playoff spot if Green Bay lost to Chicago (possible) and the New York Giants lost to Washington (NY losing to anybody, possible) – so we’re not just talking about 10 wins here, we’re talking about a possible playoff spot. Big.

The Bucs have played so many close games this season I don’t know how anybody could see value in giving them 9.5 points. The Saints still haven’t played all that well, which just reinforces my value assessment.

Josh Freeman gets better and better, and the more the Bucs give the ball to LeGarrette Blount, the better their offense becomes. He’s a beast, and I know he’ll be looking to blow up some linebackers on his way to the end-zone. If the Falcons/Panthers game gets out of hand, the Saints could very possibly pull a good chunk of their starting unit, making the Bucs an even better bet to cover.

I just don’t get the 9.5 – I know the last time these two teams went at it, the Saints destroyed the Bucs, but that was 10 games ago, and the Bucs have become a much more complete team since then. Tampa has one loss by double digits this season – one. I don’t see them doubling that this week.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+9.5) @ New Orleans Saints