Eagles-Buccaneers player props: Will rain put a damper on offense?
Whether it's the Gasparilla Festival or a championship parade for their Buccaneers, the people of Tampa love to celebrate a pirate. Kenny Chesney once sang about life on the high seas in "Pirate's Song." Let's press play on that electro-country croon and see if we can turn the ocean to silver and the beaches to gold via the player prop market.
Laughing in the devil's face, riding out the storm
If you can stare the NFL's most dangerous man for the last two decades in the face and live to tell about it, you've really accomplished something.
With rain and winds in the forecast for Sunday, I'm going to fade Tom Brady's yardage total. Injuries have hampered this Tampa offense a bit, but Brady will have Leonard Fournette back. Playoff Lenny will see a lot of short targets in the passing game and numerous carries in the rain, which will result in slower drives down the field.
The Eagles should have success moving the ball in smaller increments as well, as their offense is predicated on running the ball and throwing to Dallas Goedert. Fewer drives for both sides will mean fewer yards.
It's possible the Buccaneers will struggle in ways similar to their shutout loss to New Orleans, though I'm terrified Brady will connect on a big play or two.
Pick: Brady under 277.5 passing yards
A TD that's definitely going to happen
The sun might not be shining on anyone's face at Raymond James Stadium on Sunday, but things should be sunny for Rob Gronkowski. Gronk, who's admitted to feeling rejuvenated come playoff time in the latter stages of his career, might be singing "Ooh, what are these days?" since he won't need to stay in to block against an Eagles team that ranks 31st in sack percentage.
I don't have to tell you that one of the great red-zone targets of this generation is live for a touchdown here.
Pick: Gronkowski anytime touchdown (+100)
A TD that probably won't happen ... but maybe it does
As I discussed in the NFC Wild Card Weekend preview, the Eagles flipped their offensive strategy halfway through the regular season to a run-heavy approach, and their strong finish suggests there's "no reason to turn back."
While their odds aren't as long as we normally would like in this space, we'll tweak the format on the idea that both Boston Scott and Jordan Howard could score in this game. Scott is capable of getting in the end zone via a dump-off, but he's also had goal-line carries. Meanwhile, Howard has stayed in the league by converting in short yardage. Miles Sanders hasn't been overly reliable this season, so I'm not willing to buy him at his short price.
Pick: Scott anytime touchdown (+300), Howard anytime touchdown (+300)
Matt Russell is a betting writer for theScore. If there’s a bad beat to be had, Matt will find it. Find him on Twitter @mrussauthentic.