rozomaldini Monday Night Football, Play-offs

NFL Playoffs Cowboys @ Buccaneers

By Conor Perrett

It’s Monday Night Football and we close out the Wild-Card round with a historic player facing up against a historic team. 

Despite finishing below .500 for the first time in his career, Tom Brady gets the chance to host a playoff game, against a hot and cold Cowboys team, in what might be his last game in a Buccaneers uniform.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8-9)

Power Rankings – 13th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 16th, Defence – 13th, ST – 31st: Overall – 17th 

Making the playoffs without having a winning record is not a regular occurrence, as the Buccaneers are the latest team to do so. In a weak division, Tampa Bay now has the privilege of hosting the Dallas Cowboys, who will be favourites.

The Bucs look like a shadow of the team that won the Super Bowl two years ago, with a new head coach in place. By the sounds of things Todd Bowles will remain as head-coach no matter the result of tonight’s game, but it goes without saying the decline the Buccaneers has been on. 

Specialising on the defensive side, with a banged up secondary, things have been very inconsistent on that side of the ball.

While on the offence, the big issue has been the loss of former head-coach Bruce Arians. On a whole, the offence has been poor considering they have a seven-time Super Bowl winner at QB. The offensive line hasn’t played well because of injuries, the running game is non-existent at times and the tight ends and receivers seem to have lost a step.

Matchup to keep an eye on – Explosive plays on offence

One of the main issues for the Bucs has been moving the ball downfield. Moving the chains has been difficult by their standards, as it comes much easier when they can pick up big yards on the ground or through the air. The Cowboys’ defence has been susceptible recently to deep vertical routes, so keep an eye out for Mike Evans and Chris Godwin to use their speed to get over the top. 

Dallas Cowboys (12-5)

Power Rankings – 6th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 15th, Defence – 2nd, ST – 10th: Overall – 6th 

A lot has changed since Dallas’ Week 1 loss to the Buccaneers, but the Cowboys are still too inconsistent to be considered a major contender. They looked great when they took down the Eagles on Christmas Eve to keep the race for the top spot in the NFC East, but sloppy losses to the Jaguars and Commanders added doubt to their credentials. 

The defence has been solid throughout the season, despite picking up injuries in the secondary on the back end. Micah Parsons has earned his first All-Pro honours at the EDGE position, but has started to be schemed out of games. In the bright lights though, expect him to step up to the challenge.

Success has depended on the play of quarterback Prescott. Dak led the league in interceptions despite missing four games of play.  It’s been unlike himself to make this many mistakes, as the Cowboys need him to connect with CeeDee Lamb to be the explosive offence they know they can be.

Matchup to keep an eye on – Dallas’s run game

Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard may be one of the best one-two punch running-back combos in the league. They both work incredibly well when in rhythm and can be a nuisance to stop when running rampant. Things have slowed down a little since offensive tackle Terence Steele got sidelined with an injury, but it’s difficult to see Dallas winning this game without a big performances from either of the backs.

Previous Matchups

2022 Season:

Week 1 – Buccaneers @ Cowboys 19-3, Buccaneers win

We saw this Wild-Card matchup back in the first week of this season and to the surprise of everyone Tampa Bay blew away the Cowboys. Dallas QB Dak Prescott suffered an injury in this game that would hold him out for a month, and the Cowboys offence has significantly grown since then.

It should also be known in a personal statistic, the Dallas Cowboys have never beaten Tom Brady before.  In Brady’s 20+ year career he’s faced the Cowboys seven times, winning every one of those games.

Prediction

If you asked who would win this matchup a few weeks ago, I would have leaned heavily with the Cowboys. But since then, Dallas has looked shaky at times with both their offence and defence showing weaknesses .

It’s also hard to doubt the post-season experience Tom Brady brings to the table. There’s a reason why he has won more Super Bowls than every other franchise, as he shows up in the big games when he’s needed.

The Bucs have many reasons why they could win. They game-plan well, are at home and Dallas struggle in the outdoors. The result may matter on how they attack though. If they come out pass heavy, I think Dallas will be able to slow that down. On the other hand if they commit to the run I can see them winning the game in that style.

The problem is their run game has disappeared at times, so that is what I have to go off of. I’ll side with the Cowboys because of this. 

Cowboys 20-17 Buccaneers

rozomaldini Monday Night Football, Week 17

Monday Night Football: Bills @ Bengals

By Conor Perrett 

As the old saying goes, sometimes it’s better to leave the best till last. 

It’s something I typically do when eating my dinner and thankfully the NFL follows suit in Week 17 because what a mouthwatering feast of football we have facing us later on Monday Night Football. 

It features two Super Bowl contenders from the AFC with the Bills travelling to Cincinnati to play the Bengals. Combined their 23 wins on the season is the largest win total for two teams in a MNF game ever. 

There is no doubt this is going to be a cracker of a game and read on as I’ll break it all down for you right now.

Cincinnati Bengals (11-4)

Power Rankings – 4th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 5th, Defence – 14th, ST – 20th: Overall – 7th 

The Bengals are still looking to wrap up the AFC North crown and they can do so with a win against the Bills. After an ugly 2-3 start to the season, the Bengals are starting to hit their stride with a 9-1 record over the past 10 games. Starting quarterback Joe Burrow has inserted himself into the MVP discussion, by throwing at least two touchdowns in his past four starts.

This Cincinnati teams showed how capable they are in big games when they made the Super Bowl last year, but they will be looking to go one step further this year. This could likely be a potential AFC Conference Championship preview as these are two of the best in football but for that to happen they would need to knock out the Chiefs, a feat both teams have already achieved this season. 

The Bengals’ offence and defence has what it takes to go head on with Buffalo and they won’t want to be slowing down just before the playoffs.

Buffalo Bills (12-3)

Power Rankings – 2nd

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 3rd, Defence – 4th, ST – 7th; Overall – 1st

Bills quarterback Josh Allen is also in the MVP discussion, but needs to cut down on the turnovers and questionable decisions that have been creeping into his game. Buffalo are in the driver’s seat for the top spot in the AFC Playoffs, but they must win against Cincinnati on Monday and next week to keep the No. 1 seed and get a bye from competing on Wildcard Weekend and ensuring home advantage in the postseason. 

A loss could see the Bills fall down to the third seed, which would potentially set up road games in Cincinnati and Kansas City on their path to the Super Bowl.

What’s going in Buffalo’s favour is their resurgence of their running game. As of late, the Bills’ rushing attack is starting to threaten posting teams’ defences, adding another weapon to the offence’s arsenal. It’s one thing to stop the passing attack of Allen and Stefon Diggs, but a ground team of Allen, James Cook and Devin Singletary adds even more fuel to the fire. 

Prediction

This game is going to be an excellent one and it feels like a coin toss to pick. With the Bills on a six-game winning streak and Bengals 9-1 in their last 10 games, its macho vs macho. Both teams are well-rounded with excellent offence and defences, with QB’s that are close to best in the league.

Cincinnati has home advantage, but the Bills’ defence could be a tough matchup for them. Buffalo’s defence usually runs zone-coverage for the majority of time, and that’s what can typically slow down the Bengals. 

If Josh Allen can be a force on the ground it will add more problems to Cincinnati, as I’m going to lean toward the Bills in a shootout.

Bills 30 – 27 Bengals

rozomaldini Monday Night Football, Week 16

Bolts Beat Colts 

By David McDonnell 

The LA Chargers are into the play-offs for the first time in the Justin Herbert era, after a very comfortable win against the Colts. 

Jeff Saturday’s notions of keeping his head coaching position flew out the window after  surrendering a 33 point lead last week and they didn’t fly back in on Monday Night Football. 

This was as easy a win the Bolts could have expected against an Indy side that clocked it in and clocked it out. Unless they are that bad, which could just as easily be argued, and they need and will go another direction once they play their final game next weekend.

For the Chargers, things are looking up and they will give any team in the AFC all they want of it once the business end of the season begins.

They are a team loaded with talent who have gotten healthier as their season has progressed and their players and coaching staff deserve a lot of credit for making the playoffs, with a laundry list of injuries throughout the season and players lining out banged up. Including Justin Herbert, whose form has shot up after their bye week when he could rest his rib injury and he is undoubtedly one of the best players in the league.

Although he didn’t light it up against the Colts on MNF, he didn’t need to as he led his charges to a routine victory. 

While they still have Joey Bosa, Rashawn Slater and JC Jackson among others on injured reserve, they boast a host of first team talent able to mix it with the best. Also they are good to watch. Keenan Allen and Mike Williams continue to be an elite receiving duo, and the pair combined for 180 receiving yards against the Colts. 

Austin Ekeler opened the scoring with his first touchdown of the night. 

And in the fourth quarter he repeated his party trick. 

Nick Foles was starting under centre for the first time for Indy this season and the ring rust was evident, as he threw three interceptions on the night. The Colts fans must be counting down the seconds until the regular season is over and they can refocus on 2023. 

For the Chargers, it’s the play-offs baby! 

rozomaldini Monday Night Football, Week 16

Monday Night Football: Chargers @ Colts

By Conor Perrett 

A week on, after being on the wrong side of the largest comeback in NFL history, the Indianapolis Colts host another playoff challenger in the LA Chargers. 

The LAC have put themselves in a strong position to clinch a playoff spot this season, thanks to some close wins over the past few weeks. With an improved defence over the last two weeks, they will try carry into Monday Night Football.

Indianapolis Colts (4-9-1)

Power Rankings – 30th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 32nd, Defence – 11th, ST – 19th: Overall – 31st

After suffering that embarrassing defeat last week, Matt Ryan has been benched for a second time this season. Ryan was given a second chance when the new interim coach Jeff Saturday came in, but after his second half performance that saw the Colts offence fall off a cliff and Nick Foles has been given the opportunity to start.

To be fair to Indy, they are trying everything to try to find some sort of spark in a lost season. It seems clear some major changes will happen in the off-season, with a new coaching staff most likely being in place. They also have a top five pick on the horizon in the draft. 

The Colts defence has been the only positive on display this season. Despite missing superstar linebacker Shaquille Leonard for the majority of the season. Their defensive line is one of their biggest positives and has been key to any sort of success they have.

Los Angeles Chargers (8-6)

Power Rankings – 11th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 24th, Defence – 17th, ST – 10th: Overall – 23rd

The Chargers have won three out of their past four games to improve to 8-6 on the season, with each of those wins coming by less than a touchdown. It looked bleak for a period of time that this team would miss the postseason again, but they have put the odds in their favour over the last month.

The Bolts offence has been a bit of a disappointment this season, but after a slow start, Justin Herbert has started to perform to what we know he can over the past few weeks. He has topped the 310-yard mark in the past three games, while throwing zero interceptions in three of his past four starts. 

It is no surprise that things started clicking with the return of wide-receivers Keelan Allen and Mike Willaims. 

Los Angeles are starting to peak at the right time, as they can begin to get ready for the playoffs if they get past the Colts tonight. With three games left against teams with bottom seven records in the league, there’s a high chance they can improve their position in a stacked AFC.

Prediction

The Chargers enter the game as -4.5 favourites, despite being the away team. 

Indy’s offence is unpredictable with Foles now taking the lead, as it will be his first start of the season. It won’t be an easy matchup for him, with the Chargers defence ranking third in defensive DVOA over the past two weeks. 

On paper it’s easy to see why LA are favourites, but there’s always a chance the Colts can spring a Christmas surprise. While the end result is what matters, you have to remember Indy put themselves in a position to be up by 33 points. The  defence and special teams played amazing in that first half and they just lost it  towards the end from the glass half full point of view. 

Everything is just going right for the Chargers right now and it would be a shock if a four-win Colts team were the ones to stop them. 

Chargers 27-20 Colts

Monday Night Football: Chargers @ Colts

By Conor Perrett 

A week on, after being on the wrong side of the largest comeback in NFL history, the Indianapolis Colts host another playoff challenger in the LA Chargers. 

The LAC have put themselves in a strong position to clinch a playoff spot this season, thanks to some close wins over the past few weeks. With an improved defence over the last two weeks, they will try carry into Monday NNight Football.

Indianapolis Colts (4-9-1)

Power Rankings – 30th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 32nd, Defence – 11th, ST – 19th: Overall – 31st

After suffering that embarrassing defeat last week, Matt Ryan has been benched for a second time this season. Ryan was given a second chance when the new interim coach Jeff Saturday came in, but after his second half performance that saw the Colts offence fall off a cliff and Nick Foles has been given the opportunity to start.

To be fair to Indy, they are trying everything to try to find some sort of spark in a lost season. It seems clear some major changes will happen in the off-season, with a new coaching staff most likely being in place. They also have a top five pick on the horizon in the draft. 

The Colts defence has been the only positive on display this season. Despite missing superstar linebacker Shaquille Leonard for the majority of the season. Their defensive line is one of their biggest positives and has been key to any sort of success they have.

Los Angeles Chargers (8-6)

Power Rankings – 11th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 24th, Defence – 17th, ST – 10th: Overall – 23rd

The Chargers have won three out of their past four games to improve to 8-6 on the season, with each of those wins coming by less than a touchdown. It looked bleak for a period of time that this team would miss the postseason again, but they have put the odds in their favour over the last month.

The Bolts offence has been a bit of a disappointment this season, but after a slow start, Justin Herbert has started to perform to what we know he can over the past few weeks. He has topped the 310-yard mark in the past three games, while throwing zero interceptions in three of his past four starts. 

It is no surprise that things started clicking with the return of wide-receivers Keelan Allen and Mike Willaims. 

Los Angeles are starting to peak at the right time, as they can begin to get ready for the playoffs if they get past the Colts tonight. With three games left against teams with bottom seven records in the league, there’s a high chance they can improve their position in a stacked AFC.

Prediction

The Chargers enter the game as -4.5 favourites, despite being the away team. 

Indy’s offence is unpredictable with Foles now taking the lead, as it will be his first start of the season. It won’t be an easy matchup for him, with the Chargers defence ranking third in defensive DVOA over the past two weeks. 

On paper it’s easy to see why LA are favourites, but there’s always a chance the Colts can spring a Christmas surprise. While the end result is what matters, you have to remember Indy put themselves in a position to be up by 33 points. The  defence and special teams played amazing in that first half and they just lost it  towards the end from the glass half full point of view. 

Everything is just going right for the Chargers right now and it would be a shock if a four-win Colts team were the ones to stop them. 

Chargers 27-20 Colts

rozomaldini Monday Night Football, Week 15

The Dillon Tank runs over Rams

By David McDonnel

The Superbowl Champion Rams have run their season race and all the preseason excitement of running it back ended with a whimper as they never looked like earning a victory in Lambeau Field.

The first half was relatively even but AJ Dillon was mad for road and after carrying well early in the game, he got his reward when he ran over a Rams defender like a Sherman Tank and into the end zone for the first touchdown.  

With four points separating the sides at the break, Dillon carried into the end zone at the start of the second half to extend the Packers lead. 

Aaron Jones add another touchdown soon after and Green Bay went into a 18-point lead that they never looked like relinquishing.

Although the Rams threatened a comeback when Baker Mayfield found Tyler Higbee in the endzone, that was as close as they got. 

It has been a poor title defence by the Rams and they are a team in need of a refurb but with very few draft picks to make a tangible difference in April. This team, down three of their stars, are a shadow of the team that won last year. 

Sean McVay also needs to improve his rushing options as their run attack has been very poor this season and it is easier to defend the pass when you know it’s going to be a passing play and it also negates play-action options.

This has been an issue all season which was largely covered up by Cooper Kupp until he got injured. 

The Packers defence played well and sacked Mayfield five times, while keeping him to 111 passing yards. The win moves Green Bay to 6-8 and within touching distance of the play-offs considering they still have the Lions on the schedule in Week 18. 

rozomaldini Monday Night Football, Week 15

Monday Night Football: Rams @ Packers

By Conor Perrett 

To close out Week 15 of the NFL season, we have a Monday Night Football edition which features two teams that would have been solid preseason bets to meet in the NFC Championship. 

A lot can change in the space of a few months though and now both teams are staring down the barrel of a losing season, in which they are playing meaningless games in December.

Green Bay Packers (5-8)

Power Rankings – 20th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 11th, Defence – 23rd, ST – 30th: Overall – 15th

The Packers will be the first to admit, it has been a bit of a messy past year for their organisation. 

With all the drama that has gone on with Aaron Rodgers, the fact is he still remains with the team. After starting the season 3-1, it’s gone downhill since winning just two games in their past nine matchups. Both offence and defence has had their fair share of mistakes that has resulted in Green Bay having a less exciting season than usual.

The Packers have had a bright spot come to light over the recent weeks with the emergence of rookie wide receiver Christian Watson. After catching just 10 passes for only 88 yards in his first six games, he has caught 15 passes for 314 yards and seven touchdowns over the past four games. That stretch of games also includes at least one touchdown catch in every game. 

He may face his toughest match-up yet though, when tasked with star cornerback Jalen Ramsey for the Rams.

I also wonder if we will see Jordan Love tonight after his recent cameo.

Los Angeles Rams (4-9)

Power Rankings – 29th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 26th, Defence – 14th, ST – 24th Overall – 27th 

The Rams snapped a six-game losing streak last week with a comeback against the Las Vegas Raiders that will be remembered for a while. The past few weeks of the NFL season has had some classics which can overshadow one another, but Baker Mayfield’s comeback last Thursday Night was one of the more impressive come-from-behind victories.

Mayfield had only been on the roster for two days before he was thrown into action, which saw him overturn a 13-point deficit in the last three minutes of the game. With Matthew Stafford and John Wolford looking done for the season, Mayfield will have more time to show LA why he was a former first overall pick in the Rams last four games.

With a running game which has improved only recently, Sean McVay may be able to work some magic to give the new QB some help. But the team’s best player Aaron Donald, still remains sidelined with an ankle injury, which will continue to have huge repercussions for the defensive side.

Prediction

This contest is an interesting one with both teams having disappointing seasons compared to what their high expectations would be. To be fair, they are both coming off the wave of a win, as they try to find some success before the season ends. 

From a match-ups side of things despite not having the presence of Donald on the field the Ram’s defence has been manageable. They stop the run well and Rodgers will have his work cut out for him.  

Right now we still can’t put a finger on how good this Rams’ offence is under Mayfield. It’s great seeing him ignite that comeback victory last week, but the reason they were in that position was because the offence was lacklustre in the previous 57 minutes of the game.

Under the lights in a cold Lambeau Field, it will be tough conditions to play in. Green Bay will feel more at home as the freezing atmosphere dawns on the teams, and I think that will get them in rhythm on offence quicker, as they jump out to a lead the Rams won’t be able to catch.

Rams 13-20 Packers

rozomaldini Monday Night Football, Week 14

Pats in Playoff Picture 

By David McDonnell

The Patriots have been going under the radar all season but with four weeks of the regular season to go, they find themselves in play-off positions as the seventh seed in the AFC. 

Their task on Monday Night Football was to win on the road against the Cardinals and their task got a lot easier when Kyler Murray suffered what looked like a serious non-contact injury.  He was karted off the field only a minute and 21 seconds into the contest and was replaced by veteran QB Colt McCoy.

The New England offence has been one dimensional throughout this season playing a traditional smashmouth football style of offence and when Rhamondre Stevenson also left the fray with an injury, it meant that the Pats were without their two starting running backs as Damien Harris was already ruled out pregame.  

At the time I wondered if we would see a change of approach to the Pats offence and I got a definitive answer of No!!!

Instead the Patriots leaned on their two rookie running-backs and that approach was rewarded when sixth round rookie Kevin Harris got the first touchdown of the game and his career.

In the second quarter James Conor managed to run through the middle of a pile and out the other side for a touchdown, while being tackled by Devin McCourty. 

The Pats added to field goals to leave the score 13-13 at half time. 

That was as good as it got for the Cardinals on the night as the New England defence took over in the second half. 

A defensive touchdown gave them a seven-point lead when DeAndre Hopkins fumbled the ball while holding it in one hand, and Raekwon McMillan returned it for a 23-yard score.

Rookie Marcus Jones, who has caught the eye in recent weeks scoring touchdowns on special teams and on offence, then got his first interception of the season, which must be some kind of record.

Later in the drive Mac Jones found Hunter Henry for 39 yards to set up first and goal. At the start of the fourth quarter rookie running-back Pierre Strong, who went on a 44 yard run in the first half, also got his first touchdown of his career to make it a two-score game.

The Cardinals never threatened after as the Patriots defence dominated. In the end they finished with six sacks, three for Josh Uche, an interception and the forced fumble that was returned for a touchdown. 

Bill Belichick has a talented group of young players in New England. If they can add a few pieces to the offence in the off-season, it won’t be very long until they are back in Superbowl conversations. 

For now, with a 7-6 record, the play-offs will do. 

The Chargers and the Jets rate the same in the win-loss column and it should be an interesting race between the three teams to see who is still playing football after Week 18.

Of the three, my two-cents would be on the Chargers.

rozomaldini Monday Night Football, Week 14

MNF: Patriots v Cardinals

By Conor Perrett 

The football hasn’t stopped this weekend and tonight on Monday Night Football, we have two teams heading in the wrong direction, trying to rescue their season. 

With the Cardinals coming off a bye week, they host a New England team facing a backlash after a poor offensive performance last week.

Arizona Cardinals (4-8)

Power Rankings: 25th

DVOA Rankings: Offence: 29th, Defence: 24th, ST: 28th, Overall:  30th

The Cardinals’ defensive coordinator Vance Joseph made some comments during the week that raised eyebrows. 

When talking about the Patriots offence, Joseph said: “It’s a very conservative passing game, a lot of screens. It’s how a defensive guy would call offensive plays.” 

Joseph knew who he was aiming at he said this, with former defensive coordinator Matt Patrica running the Pats offence now. A move that came with lots of criticism and Joseph lined up to take some shots himself.

Trash talking is always fun to see in the league, but it comes at a risk. Making comments like this can back-fire, especially when the Cardinals defence has itself been poor. They have stars at all three levels of the defence, but have failed to get the best out of any of them. New England’s offence might be a good start to turn that around, but it’s a risky bet to go up against Bill Belichick like that. 

On the other side of the ball, the Cards offence has to start performing to what we saw at the start of last season. The Patriots have struggled with No. 1 receivers as of late, so with Hopkins back,  expect him to be heavily involved if Kliff Kingsbury knows what he’s doing.

New England Patriots (6-6)

Power Rankings: 15th

DVOA Rankings: Offence: 24th, Defence: 3rd, ST: 10th, Overall: 12th

The Patriots’ playoff chances are plummeting weekly and a loss to the Cardinals would drop them under .500 and leave them last place in the AFC East. Bill Belichick has worked his magic on defence, having it playing at an elite level for the majority of the year. 

But the complete opposite can be said for New England’s offence.

Things won’t get much easier for the Patriots with starters Jakobi Meyers , Isaiah Wynn and Damien Harris all expected to miss the game. Their loss will only add to New England’s worries as Matt Patrica tries to change the narrative around their offence. 

The biggest question marks will be at the offensive tackle positions. With Wynn set to miss the game with a foot injury, back-up Marcus Cannon remains on IR and third replacement Yodny Cajuste is labelled questionable. With left-tackle Trent Brown also questionable, the Patriots top-4 tackles are all in doubt for the game.

Prediction

With Arizona set to host this game you would expect that to be an advantage, but it actually might not be. The Cardinals have only won one game at home all season.

Both teams are a bit beaten up heading into the game, but Arizona do hold the advantage of a bye week to prepare for the game. New England themselves have had a bit extra time by playing on last week’s TNF, so in the grand scheme of things it evens itself out. 

Hopkins and Hollywood Brown will cause trouble for the Patriots man-coverage but the defensive line should have its way with an average Cardinals o-line.

It has all the markings to be a low scoring game with how both teams have been performing as of late, so I will learn towards the better coach. Belichick is no ordinary coach and Kingsbury has shown us nothing in his career that says he belongs in the NFL. Even with maybe the better roster and home advantage, I can’t see it making too much of a difference and see New England travelling back with the win.

Patriots 21-20 Cardinals 

rozomaldini Monday Night Football, Week 13

MNF Saints v Buccaneers

By David McDonnell

The NFC South is all up for grabs, as the Saints travel to Tampa for this version of Monday Night Football. 

A win would be a statement for either team and give them a chance of winning the division, so expect a high intensity matchup with everyone going all out for the win.

New Orleans Saints (4-7)

Power Rankings – 28th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 24th, Defence – 15th, ST – 28th: Overall –  25th

The NFC South has been bad this year, but a win for the Saints could pull them to within half a game of first place. This season has been a tale of two different halves for them. 

In the first half, they were losing many high-scoring games as their offence consistently put 25 to 30 points on the board, while the defence got absolutely wrecked week in week out. Now their games have done a complete 180, as over the past five weeks the offence has cooled off while the defence has turned up, allowing more than 20 points just once during that stretch.

With their defence looking solid and three of their remaining five games against divisional foes, the division title isn’t out of their hands just yet. But an away win against Tampa is a must if they want momentum in their favour and a chance to catch the Bucs.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-6)

Power Rankings – 16th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 17th, Defence – 7th, ST – 19th: Overall – 10th

The biggest problem for Tampa Bay remains an offence that can’t score points consistently. They have only topped the 22-point mark just once this season, despite Tom Brady playing mistake-free football. He has only thrown just two interceptions all year, but the big plays and scoring drives have completely evaporated.

Despite the worries on offence this team is still in line to host a play-off game. The defence has been the more solid unit throughout the year but injuries in the secondary can always hamper them. After coming off an ugly overtime loss to the Browns last week, the Bucs will be looking to set the record straight now and grow their lead within the division.

Previous Matchups

2022 Season:

Week 2 – Buccaneers @ Saints 20-10 Buccaneers Win

Despite having more success in recent years, Tom Brady and the Buccaneers have struggled with the Saints. With Brady in a Tampa uniform, he was 0-4 against them coming into the year, but managed to finally beat New Orleans earlier this season. Since then, Tampa looks to have regressed, so was it just a fluke or can the Buccaneers grow the lead in the NFC South?

Prediction

Teh Bucs enter this prime-time game as 3.5 favourites over the Saints.

Tampa Bay haven’t looked themselves on offence all year and come face-to-face with a steadily improving Saints defence. While the New Orleans offence can go hot and cool, the defence has really stepped up as of late and should do against Tampa Bay tonight as well.

With the Buccaneers missing Tristan Wirfs on the offensive line, it will only help the Saints, as I see them pulling off an upset. 

Whether it’s Andy Dalton or Jameis Winston at QB, they won’t have to play a perfect game but just outscore a below average offence that struggles against them.

Saints 20-17 Buccaneers

rozomaldini Monday Night Football, Week 12

MNF Colts v Steelers

By Conor Perrett 

Monday Night Football is back, as Jeff Saturday gets ready for his third game in his coaching career by hosting the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

Both teams have spent the majority of the season being underwhelming, but don’t let their records put you off as they have both looked on the rise recently.

Indianapolis Colts  (4-6-1)

Power Rankings – 24th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 32nd, Defence – 10th, ST – 28th: Overall – 29th

At first glance Indy’s DVOA rankings are pretty awful. 

There’s no getting around how poor of a start they had to the season, but in the last two weeks under a new interim coach, they’ve seen improvement. The main reasoning for their turnaround is the lack of turnovers now. During the first half of the season the offence collectively had 16 total turnovers. 

Even though it’s a small sample size, under Saturday now the ball has only been turned over once. With a lot more mistake free football being played.

Off-season acquisition Matt Ryan is back in at quarterback and running back Jonathon Taylor is back to being utilised. Last year’s rushing leader Taylor couldn’t get anything going at the start of this season but now the Colts have had over 300 rushing yards the last two games.

Whether Jeff Saturday gets the permanent job at the end of the season is still a long way off, but he has definitely turned this team around for the best. 

With the NFL recently leaning towards the young offensive genius as head coach, the appreciation for motivational leaders in the same position shouldn’t go unnoticed. Mike Vrable started the trend a few years ago having a ton of success in Tennessee winning Coach of the Year. Detroit is seeing a turnaround with Dan Campbell leading the way. So it shouldn’t be a surprise Saturday is following their lead. 

It’s very early on but the Colts look like they’re in a lot better position than they did before his appointment. 

Injury Report: 

Ruled Out:

  • DE Kwity Paye (Ankle)

Pittsburgh Steelers (3-7)

Power Rankings – 27th

DVOA Rankings: Offence – 22nd, Defence – 14th, ST – 17th: Overall – 20th

The Steelers have followed a similar trajectory to the Colts, with a poor start to the season but improvement over the last two games. Their superstar player TJ Watt returned to the defence during that time and clearly it is showing the spark he brings to the team.

The offence has seen the most improvement over that span with rookie Kenny Pickett starting to put things together. With weapons such as George Pickens, Diontae Johnson and Pat Friermuth, there’s a lot to go around. The passing game has been ignored at times as Pittsburgh ranks last in passing yards and touchdowns but the run game is starting to come together.

Najee Harris has failed to repeat his standout 2021 season, but he was quietly playing with a steel plate in his shoe through the start of the season and may just now be healed. The last two games he’s got into the endzone twice, while getting over 90 yards on the ground in both games. His yards per carry is up as well and it’s helping the offence out massively. 

Indy is a great team at stopping the run, ranking 6th in EPA per rush, so we’ll see tonight how much this offence really has improved.

Injury Report: 

Ruled OUT:

  • CB Ahkello Witherspoon (Hamstring)
  • RB Jaylen Warren (Hamstring)

Prediction

These teams are very alike in their improvement over the last two weeks, but possess quarterbacks who have struggled over the whole of the season.

It comes down to which team can get pressure from their defence to make the quarterback crack and the Steelers may have both the better defence and pass rush to do that. TJ Watt’s return has been huge and adds a sense of impact to a game that very few in this league can do. 

I like the matchup for this Steelers’ D and think they could have a big impact on the way this game is won. Along with Pickett showing vast improvement scoring 30 points on a Bengals defence last week, I think the Steelers win this one on the road.

Steelers 19-17 Colts