Pewter Pirate Predictions: Week Four – Buccaneers vs Eagles

It is a potential NFC championship game preview this weekend in Tampa. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will play host to the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles. Both teams enter this game 3-0 and only one will walk away still undefeated.

It always feels like fireworks when these two teams face off. This week should be no different, so sit down, buckle up and get ready for a heck of a football game. Here’s how I see this game playing out in my week four Pewter Pirate Predictions.

Saquon? More Like Don’t Say-Quon!

The 2024 offensive player of the year is off to a bit of a slow start this season. Through three games Saquon Barkley is only averaging 3.3 yards per carry. This is a big drop off from his 5.8 yards per carry last year that led him to over 2,000 rushing yards.

A dip in efficiency is often the case after a player leads the NFL in rushing attempts. Too much wear and tear on the body is part of that. However, it also draws all the attention of opposing defenses to take that kind of player away.

Regardless of the reason, I believe the Bucs will continue this trend. They come into this game with the NFL’s 6th best rushing defense, and will certainly be keying in on the super star running back. My prediction is that Barkley doesn’t break 65 rushing yards in this game.

Jalen’s House of Hurts

Lots of quarterbacks struggle against a Todd Bowles led defense. However, it feels like Hurts struggles more than most. In five games, including two playoff games, Jalen Hurts is 1-4 vs the Bucs and 0-2 in the postseason. This includes just five touchdown passes and five interceptions.

This year, the Buccaneers come in with a retooled secondary. They drafted two rookie cornerbacks who have played very well this season. They also have a healthy Antoine Winfield Jr (which they lacked all of last year) and Jamel Dean playing at perhaps the highest level of his career.

All these factors led me to believe that Hurts will struggle in this game. Even with great receivers such as Devonta Smith and AJ Brown, I don’t expect a big day through the air. I predict that Hurts throws for less than 175 yards and will not have more touchdown passes than interceptions in this game.

The Bucky Breakout

The Buccaneers have yet to really break out with their rushing attack this year. They haven’t looked like the same group that was a top five running game in the NFL last season. This is largely because they HAVEN’T been the same group. 

The offensive line has been shuffled around all season. Last week, they didn’t have a single starter in this unit who played in their starting position. However, we might see that change this week.

Super star left tackle Tristan Wirfs could be making his season debut in this game, which will shift starting center Graham Barton and starting left guard Ben Bredeson back to their normal positions. That combined with the Eagles linebackers coming into this game banged up, I predict that we see rush for a season high this week and get his first rushing touchdown of the year.

Overall

I expect this to be more of a defensive struggle. The Bucs match up well against the Eagles, but are missing several key pro bowl level starters. I think this leads to a struggle to score for both teams.

While I believe the Bucs are the better roster on paper, the injuries they are dealing with will make this a close game. Even so, I feel more confident about them pulling out a win here then I did when they went on the road to play the Houston Texans.

Score Prediction

Eagles – 20
Buccaneers – 24