Friday, September 4, 2009

Game by Game Buccaneer Predictions

In June I said somewhere between 3-13 and 5-11; just don't see 6 wins as attainable. Frankly, I'm having a tough time giving them these 3. Here's my take:

1 - vs. Dallas (L)
Yes it’s at home, but I don’t see us slowing them down enough to pull out a W.

2 - @ Buffalo (W)
I like that we get them early; both to avoid the winter weather and before Owens and Edwards develop decent chemistry. I think this will be the closest the Bucs come to a win in the first 5 weeks.

3 - vs. NY Giants (L)
We might match up a little better with them physically this time, but I think the Bucs wear down in the second half.

4 - @ Washington (L)
I have a feeling we'll be pretty banged up heading into this one. I’d like their chances better if this game was held in week 3.

5 - @ Philadelphia (L)
The Eagles are going far this year, and the Bucs won’t slow them down.

6 - vs. Carolina (W)
The Bucs pull off their first win at home.

7 - vs. New England (L)
Third “home” loss of the year

BYE

8 - vs. Green Bay (L)
The Packers might start out slow with a new defense, but I expect them to be in a pretty good groove midseason. They’re the better team. I also think this will be the game where the Bucs hand over the reigns of the offense to Josh Freeman.

9 - @ Miami (L)
Got a strong feeling; not good.

10 - vs. New Orleans (L)
Maybe an upset, but like Dallas, I can’t see us outscoring them; even at home.

11 - @ Atlanta (L)
Loss. Do I need to say more?

12 - @ Carolina (L)
We won’t beat them twice.

13 - vs. NY Jets (W)
Here’s another game I wish was being played earlier. I’d rather face Mark Sanchez in week 3 than 13. It hard to tell how the Jets are going to do, but this one should be close. I'm giving us this one but don't feel good about it at all.

14 - @ Seattle (L)
We don’t play well out west, and I think Seattle’s going to be pretty decent.

15 - @ New Orleans (L)
Nope

16 - vs. Atlanta (L)
Even if they’re not playing for anything, it’s going to take a let up for the Bucs to win.

3-13 and a top 5 pick in the 2010 draft. Usually you can count on a team winning a game or two they shouldn't, but I can't find one of those games on the schedule I'm calling for the Browns to finish with 2 wins and the Bucs, Lions, Rams, and Chiefs to each manage 3 victories. There are going to be some craptastically bad teams in the NFL this year.
.
.

4 comments:

  1. 1. bucs cant block demarcus ware. can leftwich buy some time in the pocket with his feet? of course not. 0-1.

    2. owens and evans run free. a lot. 0-2

    3. penn and trueblood go matador against giant ends. 0-3

    4. haynesworth a load, but tires out from the heat. bucs find running room in the 2nd half. 1-3!

    5. TPE's 2009 upset special! winslow finally shows up; 7 catches, 113 yards. 2-3.

    6. the game where we all see that steven smith has lost a half a step and carolina is overrated. but bryant(nugent) misses a 47 yard game winner with 30 seconds left. 2-4.

    7. brady is hardly pressured much less sacked. 21-26 3 td 0 int 101.3 qb rating puts him 2nd in nfl behind matt schaub. 2-5, and we all accept gaines adams is a bust.

    8. packers come out flat and cant run well on bucs interior linemen, but rodgers is on point. 2-6

    9. talib gets a bead on pennington and has a career day. 3-6

    10. reggie bush gets to the edge. a lot. 3-7

    11. bucs fans left wondering why some qb'slike matt ryan get so good so fast and others....3-8

    12. john fox vs. raheem round 2. not really a matchup to my liking. 3-9.

    13. young buc dt's begin to come into form. bucs dont respect play action, sanchez looks like a rookie. 4-9.

    14. west coast trip. maybe if it were s.f., but not seattle, a team in the hunt for a division title. 4-10

    15. i will be watching closely to see if the bucs quit on raheem. saints win exactly like they did in the 1st game. 4-11.

    16. falcons playoff slot is set. mike smith rests everyone and bucs scrap hard for a win that moves them down in the draft order below the consensus cant miss selections in the draft. 4-12.

    TPE

    ReplyDelete
  2. Great job TPE! I still have trouble getting them over 3-13, but your picks are solid.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you Talbuc. I just read Vic Carucci's piece on the Bills and have decided to amend a previous prediction, i.e. I am making by first blueberry nutmeg waffle. I'm swapping my Buffalo and Philly picks; no TPE upset special this year. Still 4-10 though!

    TPE

    ReplyDelete
  4. Beating Philly would be the NFL's upset of the year.

    ReplyDelete