NFC Wild Card Prediction, Preview, Odds, and How to Watch: Philadelphia vs Tampa Bay

HOW TO WATCH PHILADELPHIA AT TAMPA BAY Date: January 15, Monday8:15 is the game time. Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida; ETVenueHow to Watch: ABC/ESPNPhiladelphia (11-6), Tampa Bay (9-8) is the record.CFN on X | Pete Fiutak on XFacebook’s College Football NewsPete Fiutak on Discussions | CFN on Discussions The NFL Postseason Experts’ Selections for Wild CardsGreen Bay at Dallas; Miami at KCPitt at Buffalo; Cleveland at HoustonPhiladelphia at Tampa Bay and Rams at Detroit Preview of the Philadelphia vs. Tampa Bay game

WHY PHILADELPHIA WILL WIN This has the feel of a team that got tired – and that’s a bit of a positive.After coming so close to winning the Super Bowl last season, and with all of the expectations going into this year, and with the hot 10-1 start that all but locked in a playoff spot before December, the team seemed – again – tired.Now it’s time to turn it on.No, it’s not a plus that the pass defense is a rumor, or that the run defense has gone bye-bye, or that the star receivers are hurt and Jalen Hurts is playing like he really, really needs some time off.But it’s all still there. The talent, the coaching, and the know-how are in place to get through the opener in the tournament as long as Hurts can get going out of the gate.Tampa Bay sputtered a bit late against the run, but the defensive front should have enough to hold up. The secondary, though, was a massive problem. Overall, for as well as it’s playing offensively, the Bucs can’t keep up if Philly starts moving.The Eagles are 8-0 when they get past 355 yards of total offense, and 3-6 when they don’t. Tampa Bay is 3-8 when allowing more than 305 yards – only five teams were able to hold the Eagles to under that. It’s going to come from Hurts spreading it around to a slew of different targets because … WHY TAMPA BAY WILL WIN How healthy are AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith?Smith has been banged up all year with various issues, and then he gets out there and doesn’t have a problem. However, Brown suffered a knee injury in the regular season finale against the Giants and is questionable at generous best.And then there’s that matter of being able to “turn it on.” It was supposed to do that against the Giants, and there wasn’t anything there.The ground game was fine, but Hurts was last, the defense didn’t get off the bus, and the turnovers issues continued to matter. The D stopped taking the ball away on a regular basis at the end of September, and the offense now can’t stop screwing up with 12 giveaways over the last five games.On the other side, Tampa Bay’s offense is clicking. There’s a nice balance, Baker Mayfield has been terrific, and it’s all been one of the feel-good stories of the season going 5-1 down the stretch. However …

PHILADELPHIA AT TAMPA BAY WHO WILL WIN Tampa Bay didn’t beat anyone.Green Bay in mid-December was the only win over a playoff team this season. It was 0-5 against the other teams on the slate who are now in the playoffs, and Philadelphia was one of them. It was way back in Week 3 at the end of September.The Buccaneer run defense allowed a season-most 201 rushing yards, Philly’s 472 yards of total offense were a season-high, and there weren’t any issues on the road in a 25-11 win.These two are vastly different now. Can Philadelphia get over being – again … tired?Yes. It’s not going to be anything pretty, but the defense will step up and play one of its best games in several weeks. There won’t be enough of a Tampa Bay running game to worry about, and even though Mayfield will be fine, Hurts and the parts in place will be too good.Again on that ground game, Philadelphia is 7-9 when allowing fewer than 85 rushing yards. Tampa Bay has failed to get to 85 yards ten times. PHILADELPHIA AT TAMPA BAY PREDICTION, ODDS Philadelphia 24, Tampa Bay 20Line: Philadelphia -3, o/u: 43.5ATS Confidence out of 5: 3Must See Rating (out of 5): 3.5 NFL Playoffs Wild Card Experts PicksCleveland at Houston | Miami at KC Pitt at Buffalo | Green Bay at Dallas Rams at Detroit | Philly at Tampa Bay