NFL Preseason Free Picks Tampa Bay at Jacksonville Week 2

Posted by Eric Williams on Friday,August 19, 2016 4:59, EDT in

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Jacksonville Jaguars will both look to get the ‘W’ when they square off in their Week2 preseason showdown after suffering losses in their respective preseason openers last weekend. Now, let’s find out which one of these upstart playoff hopefuls will cover the NFL preseason betting odds on Saturday at EverBank Field.

Here’s a Closer Look At The NFL Preseason Free Picks Buccaneers at Jaguars Week 2

When: Saturday, August 20, 2016 at 7:30 PM ET
Where: EverBank Field, Jacksonville, FL
TV: NFL Network
Live Stream: NFL Game Pass
NFL Odds: Jacksonville Jaguars -3 / Over/Under: 40.5

 

 

Why Bet on Tampa Bay +3 Points

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-10 SU, 7-9 ATS) looks like a good bet because they’re comparable to Jacksonville in their respective rebuilding efforts and actually have the better starting quarterback. The Buccaneers were on the wrong end of a humbling 17-9 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 1, but quarterback Jameis Winston played well by completing 7 of 9 passes for 97 yards and one touchdown before leaving.

Backup Ryan Griffin completed 13 of 23 passes 148 passing yards but tossed two costly interceptions while veteran backup Mike Glennon completed 7 of 14 passes for 83 yards with one pick. The Bucs were held to just 1.5 yards per carry as starting running back Doug Martin rushed for a team high 13 yards on five carries. Defensively, the Bucs gave up two touchdown runs and 96 rushing yards in the loss.  Luke Rhodes led the Buccaneers with five tackles, Howard Jones had one sack and Jonathan Banks had one pass deflection.

Why Bet on Jacksonville -3 Points

Jacksonville (5-11 SU, 7-8-1 ATS) looks like a good bet because they’re playing at home against a team that isn’t ‘better’ than they are. The Jaguars were on the wrong end of a hard-fought 17-13 loss to the Jets in Week 1, but saw all three of their quarterbacks play well in the loss. Starter, Blake Bortles was also solid with six completions on seven pass attempts for 105 yards while young backup Brandon Allen completed 10 of 19 passes for 138 yards and one interception. Veteran backup Chad Henne completed 8 of 9 passes for 94 yards.

Receivers Allen Robinson and Marqise Lee combined for 129 receiving yards on seven catches while Chris Ivory rushed for a team-high 26 yards on six carries. Defensively, Tampa Bay gave up one rushing score and one passing touchdown. Telvin Smith led the Jaguars with five tackles while Bjoern Werner added one sack and Aaron Colvin, one pass deflection.

 

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Expert Prediction and Betting Pick

The Buccaneers are 0-7 ATS in their last 7 Saturday games and 0-4 ATS in their last 4 games overall while the Jaguars have gone 1-4-1 ATS in their last six games overall. The underdog in this rivalry is 5-1 ATS in their last 6 meetings, but for me, the Jacksonville Jaguars are the pick to get the win and narrow ATS cover at home.

The Bucs didn’t look very cohesive in their opener against Philadelphia and I maintain that Tampa Bay blew it by firing former head coach Lovie Smith. Jacksonville is a young team with a lot of guys fighting for key roster spots, so I expect them to go all out for the win in this one!

My Pick: Jacksonville 24 Tampa Bay 21