The final match of the Christmas Day triple header in the NFL 2022 season comes from the building which will host the Super Bowl at the end of the campaign and will see the Arizona Cardinals taking on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
This is a big match for the Buccaneers. Two teams are now queuing up behind them in the race for the NFC South title so a win would keep them at bay. This match is merely playing out the season for the Cardinals.
Arizona Cardinals
Whenever a team hosts a Super Bowl you always expect big things from them but that was especially the case when they went so well last season. It is fair to say it hasn’t happened for them though. A team with their roster should be doing a whole lot better than a 4-10 record and already their season is done from a competitive point of view. They can still play the role of spoiler but also you sense this team needs to find something to take into next season with them.
The Cardinals go into this match without a win in any of their last four matches. They have been without quarterback Kyler Murray for some of that time and they will be without his backup for this match as well which means that there will be a first start for Trace McSorley, who came in for Colt McCoy last week when he entered concussion protocol. He threw two picks though so you suspect if the Cardinals are going to compete here their defence will need to keep them in the game.
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Tampa Bay Buccaneers
This hasn’t been the season that anyone would have wanted for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers or would have expected from them but if they hold on and win the NFC South then they won’t really care. Should they make the playoffs it goes without saying that they will need a huge improvement to go all the way in them but they have some elite individuals in their ranks and if a few of them come good at the same time then you just never know what can be achieved.
One thing which would really help the Bucs is if they can establish some sort of run game. Statistically they are the worst team in the league in terms of running the ball and with the weather conditions the way they are around the league being able to take the heat off the passing game will help. That passing game hasn’t always convinced anyway and as a result of that Tampa Bay head to the desert having lost three of their last four matches.
Betting
I think we have to be looking at a Tampa Bay Buccaneers win in this match but whether they win by enough to cover a 7.5 point handicap when winning is their sole intention might be a different question. If I was pushed I would say that they will but there are some really good offensive playmakers in the Arizona Cardinals squad and it might be that their third choice quarterback is a lot better than he showed last week now that he has had a week to get used to the idea of starting.
I’m instead going to target a matchup for this game and the big one is Mike Evans against this Cardinals defence which is one of, if not the worst in the league and which has a number of issues in terms of injuries. Evans caught five passes last week, the first time he has caught that many since the win over Seattle on November 13. He picked up 83 receiving yards and I expect him to be the first port of call for Brady here in a must win match. Evans is an elite receiver and he should get plenty of chance to show that here against a defence he should match up well against. He has a receiving yards line of 57.5 for this one and that looks low for a man of his quality.
Tips
Back M.Evans – Over 57.5 receiving yards for a 3/10 stake at 1.91 with Bet365
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