Ravens vs Buccaneers NFL Week 7 MNF picks
We’re six weeks into this wild NFL season, and Monday Night Football for Week 7 should be an up-and-down affair with the Baltimore Ravens heading south to Tampa to take on the resurgent Tampa Bay Buccaneers in an intraconference matchup of 4-2 teams. With Lamar Jackson and Baker Mayfield quarterbacking each team as live favorites for the league MVP race, it should be an exciting matchup with plenty of fireworks.
We’ve got the Ravens vs Buccaneers picks for Monday Night Football in Week 7, so let’s dive right in.
Predictions
Pick #1: Baltimore Ravens -3.5 over Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-110)
Pick #2: Over 49.5 (-108)
Pick #3: Baker Mayfield (TB) Over 1.5 Passing Touchdowns (-115)
Pick #1: Ravens -3.5 over Buccaneers (-110)
We’ll begin our Ravens vs Buccaneers picks for MNF by taking the Baltimore Ravens -3.5 against the Buccaneers. Seeing how the Ravens have defeated their opponents, there’s no exact blueprint for defeating them, or at least keeping Baltimore in check. Sure, you can sell out to try and stop running back Derrick Henry, but then you have to contend with Lamar Jackson in both the running game and passing the ball to his numerous weapons. Try and contain Lamar, and you’re in a world of hurt with Henry reeling off chunk plays. And we haven’t mentioned Zay Flowers or Mark Andrews yet.
While the Buccaneers’ offense is very good in their own right, as they scored 51 points against the hapless New Orleans Saints, doing that against the Ravens is another animal. Baltimore has gone on a fantastic run since starting 0-2 with losses against the Chiefs and Raiders. They’ve gotten into a groove with three straight wins where they’ve scored 28, 35 and 41 points against the Cowboys, Bills and Bengals, respectively. The Bucs are good, but the Ravens are just a little bit better. Look for the Ravens to win and clear the -3.5 point line (-110) on Monday Night Football.
Pick #2: Over 49.5 Total Points (-108)
The next pick in the Ravens vs Buccaneers MNF game is taking the over on the 49.5-point line. Baltimore has one of the most diverse and dynamic offenses in the NFL and it’s going to be hard to stop, but you can say the same for the Buccaneers, too. Both the Ravens and Buccaneers are top-six teams in EPA per play this season and on the defensive side, both are middle-of-the-pack or below-average in EPA per play. The offenses are clearly ahead of the defenses in this one.
We talked about how many points the Ravens have scored in the last three games, but the Buccaneers are even better, with 33 points in a drubbing of the Eagles, 30 points against the Falcons on Thursday Night Football, and then the 51-point outburst against the Saints. Knowing what both offenses have up their sleeves with personnel and potency, it’s hard not to back the Over 49.5 points (-108) for Ravens vs Buccaneers.
Pick #3: Baker Mayfield (TB) Over 1.5 Passing Touchdowns (-115)
Our final Ravens vs Buccaneers pick for Monday Night Football is taking Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield to go over 1.5 passing touchdowns. If these two teams are going to hit the over, they’re going to need some passing touchdowns. That’s something Mayfield has provided recently, as he’s averaged three touchdown passes in his last three games – including four against the New Orleans Saints. Between Chris Godwin’s return to elite status in the slot, the omnipresent Mike Evans always being a threat on the boundary, and Cade Otton being a stalwart at tight end, there is no shortage of weapons for Mayfield to get the ball to.
There also are a lot of mouths to feed at running back, and it’s possible that if the Bucs go into the Sunday Night tilt against the Ravens with a three-headed backfield of Bucky Irving, Rachaad White and Sean Tucker, they may cannibalize each other’s production. The Bucs’ rushing attack has been their downfall the last few seasons, so picking up the slack with passing strikes has been fruitful for the 4-2 Buccaneers. We’ll take Mayfield Over 1.5 Passing Touchdowns (-115) for Monday Night Football.
