A breakdown and pick for Thursday Night Football - Ravens at Bucs

The Baltimore Ravens travel to Tampa to take on the Buccaneers Thursday night. Both were projected to be among the best in the NFL before the season began, but disappointed to one extent or another.

The visiting Ravens are two-point favorites (total of 45), according to NFL odds. Care to guess the last time Tom Brady was an underdog at home? (That was a rhetorical question . . . we don’t actually know the answer).

Ravens’ Roller Coaster

The Baltimore Ravens, at 4-3, are truly an enigmatic team, as after they win, the Ravens lose…regularly. If you’re a glass-half-full sort of person, Baltimore hasn’t gone on a losing streak. Conversely, ‘half-empty’ folks haven’t seen a winning streak by this team.

It's a rare level of inconsistency that few NFL teams find themselves in during the course of a season. Baltimore must string wins together if it is to be taken seriously as a contender.

What’s troubling is In each of the Ravens’ three losses to date, they were leading at halftime.

Baltimore needs to keep pressuring Brady early and often, before and after intermission.

On the other side of the ball, the Ravens’ offense is as inconsistent as their record. Baltimore has one of the better rushing attacks, even without running back J.K. Dobbins.

Quarterback Lamar Jackson has not enjoyed a spectacular season thus far, as the team is just 26th in the NFL in passing yards per game.

Despite their vagaries, the Ravens remain odds-on favorites (-160) to win the AFC North, according to NFL odds.

Buccaneers’ Losing Skid

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have had a terrible five weeks. The Buccaneers are 1-4 in their last five, 3-4 through seven games this season.

They’ve lost to a pair of the league’s worst teams in the Pittsburgh Steelers and Carolina Panthers. Pittsburgh’s depleted secondary and concussed quarterback, while the Panthers having days before traded their best runner and reduced to starting a third-string quarterback.

Tampa desperately needs to regain its confidence, so perhaps a quick turnaround and a return home helps the cause. However, Tampa is the worst running team in the NFL, league-low 64.4 rush yards per game.

That is asking a lot of Brady, with limited mobility and a failing line. Brady. though, is not abandoning the pirate ship.

The bad news in Tampa is Baltimore is a lot better team than either the Steelers or Panthers. However, the Bucs have done a solid job at limiting opponents, with a stout defense as well.

If Tampa is able to hinder Baltimore's rushing, it has a shot. Baltimore’s struggled in the passing game this season. However, that is easier said than done in terms of maintaining Jackson, one of the league’s more explosive players.

Buccaneers’ Late Comeback

Baltimore’s inconsistency is far too prevalent to have it favored in this game, especially on the road. Also, a lot can be said about Tampa needing this game more than the Ravens. These are narratives which hold some truth, and thus the Buccaneers should squeak by.

Expect the Buccaneers to win this late, so take them and the two points.