NFL Week 8 Thursday Night Football Preview: Ravens Fly Down to Tampa

 

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Baltimore Ravens (4-3) at Tampa Bay (3-4)

Early in the season, there was some speculation that this could prove to be a Super Bowl preview. Now, well....not so much. I mean, it still could, theoretically. Neither of these teams has been eliminated, or anything. But neither are looking super.

Neither of these two teams, both of whom were expected to be serious contenders this season, are where they want to be at this stage of the season. Both have lost some games that they should have won, and are having some serious problems. The Ravens keep losing games in which they enjoyed big leads. And the Bucs just keep losing games, period.

Just for the record, the Ravens are closer to being where they want to be. They actually sport a winning record at the moment, and are in a first place tie atop their division with an opponent that they managed to beat once already. Also, despite losing those big leads in the games that they eventually fell in, they nevertheless were good enough to get those leads in the first place. Maybe the Ravens can pull this off, and knock on that window. Sorry, couldn't resist the Poe reference for this Halloween season game involving the Ravens. 

But the Bucs won the Super Bowl just a couple of seasons ago. They have Tom Brady, the GOAT, at the helm. Yet, they are 3-4 at this point in time? Well, the offense continues to struggle. Maybe Brady is finally showing his age. Perhaps the most shocking result of the season so far came just last week for them, when they scored all of three points against the Carolina Panthers, one of the worst teams in the league. So either that will jump start a new intensity for them, and they will have a turnaround, or.....they simply continue to see this once promising season unravel. 

So that makes this an interesting game. It really could go either way. I could envision a scenario where the Ravens play well, and get the win to outright take the lead in the AFC North, at least temporarily. Yet, I can also picture the Bucs pulling it together and managing a win, as well. Home field advantage should help the Bucs in that regard.

Frankly, it's a toss up. But so far this season, a lot of teams - I mean, a lot of teams - seem to be hovering at around .500. In that spirit, I expect the Bucs to win, to push both teams to that .500 level once again.

My pick: Tampa Bay