Bucs vs Rams NFL Handicapping
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will make the trip over to Missouri to take on the St. Louis Rams on Sunday. Both teams are out of the playoff picture but there is still plenty of pride on the line.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-10) at St. Louis Rams (6-8)
Date: Sunday, December 22, 2013
Time: 1:00 PM ET
Venue: Edward Jones Dome
City: St. Louis, Missouri
O/U Odds: 43
Spread: St. Louis -4
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The Rams look to close out their year with back-to-back wins to preserve a .500 finish, while Tampa Bay has played much better since the midway point of the season and looks to possibly salvage Greg Schiano’s job.
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St. Louis threw the football world a curveball in their last game, beating New Orleans, 27-16.
Quarterback Kellen Clemens threw for an efficient 158 yards and two scores without an interception, completing 14 of 20 passes, but it was the team’s ground game that gave New Orleans fits, with lead back Zac Stacy at the forefront. Stacy churned out 133 yards and a touchdown on 28 totes, good for an average of 4.8 yards per carry. Each of Clemens’s touchdown passes found tight ends, as Lance Kendricks and Cory Harkey were on the receiving end of one apiece.
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The team’s defense bent but didn’t break. Drew Brees was allowed to throw for 393 yards but only one touchdown, getting picked off twice and sacked four times. The team churned out 432 yards of offense but only 16 points.
Tampa Bay didn’t find the same result in their last game as they had a tough go of it against San Francisco, falling 33-14.
Quarterback Mike Glennon completed 18 of 34 passes for 179 yards and two scores with an interception in that one. Running back Bobby Rainey never did get it going on the ground, rushing for just 27 yards on 11 carries. The team’s only bright spots were through the air as Vincent Jackson caught five passes for 58 yards and a score, while tight end Tim Wright had seven catches for 82 yards and a score. Wright’s development has been a particularly pleasant surprise for the team as he continues to improve his receiving skills and is developing into one of the better young pass-catching tight ends in football. The team’s defense allowed San Francisco to generate 376 yards of offense.
Neither side has any postseason plans but both will want this game in a bad way. St. Louis badly wants to close out this season at .500, while Tampa Bay looks to finish the season strong after an embarrassing start. Youngsters like Glennon, Rainey, and Wright are jockeying for playing time next season and will look to put up big numbers under the dome. That, combined with a big effort from their defense should be enough for the Buccaneers to at least keep this one close.
The Buccaneers are 5-2 ATS in their last seven games overall.
The play: Tampa Bay +4
