The NFC Divisional Round of the 2023 NFL playoffs is here and today we have a matchup that nobody would have predicted at the start of the 2023 NFL season with the NFC South winning Tampa Bay Buccaneers taking on the NFC North winning Detroit Lions. The Buccaneers are fresh off their Wild Card Round win over the Philadelphia Eagles while the Lions had a home victory over Matthew Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams. 

NFL NFC Divisional Round Predictions

Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Detroit Lions

  • Spread: Lions -6.5
  • Total: 49

This game is going to come down to a few key things. First (and second), the Lions pass-rush should be able to get to Baker Mayfield and their run defense needs to stifle Rachaad White early. If those two things happen, it’s going to be a long day for the Bucs. They need that to happen in order to open up play-action. Otherwise, the Lions secondary can sit on Mike Evans and Chris Godwin and use extra defensive backs, if needed. The next is the Lions jumping out to an early lead. We all know David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs make for a strong tandem but the Bucs run defense is definitely solid. That means Jared Goff is going to have to find his weapons downfield. The Tampa secondary is their biggest weakness and with the way everything funnels to the middle, guys like Amon-Ra St. Brown and Sam LaPorta thrive. If that happens as well, the Lions can then just chew up the clock in the second half with the running game. Do all those things happen? I think they do.

Game Pick: Lions -6.5 (-110)

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