Thursday Night Football: Tampa Bay searching for first win of season in Atlanta

Tamp Bay Buccaneers at Atlanta Falcons (-6.5, 44.5 o/u)

After last weekend can anyone expect much out of the Tamp Bay Buccaneers (0-2) or Atlanta Falcons (1-1). The former lost a close game to a perceived weaker team (St. Louis Rams), while the latter was manhandled by a division leader (Cincinnati Bengals).

As for Tampa Bay, head coach Lovie Smith has plenty to complain about on both sides of the ball. He said, “A lot is being said about the offense, and what we’re doing in certain situations, but where we’re really not performing well enough right now is on the defensive side.

“From long drives to taking the ball away. Our first goal on the defensive side is to score. We haven’t come close to doing any of those things at this stage. But we will.”

Smith may rally his troops but this week his defense is depleted with defensive tackle Gerald McCoy and linebacker Mason Foster injured and out.

Looking to the Falcons, quarterback Matt Ryan was lackluster in Cincinnati but Atlanta’s head coach Mike Smith has other worries.

Smith said, “We’ve got to put more pressure on the quarterback. It’s not where we want to be at after the first two games. I think that’s translated into us not playing the type of defense that we want.”

When it comes to quarterback play, there’s little doubt Ryan is superior to veteran Josh McCown. Odds are the Falcons signal caller will have more of a week 1 game (throwing for 448 yards) than his dismal week 2 showing (passing for 231 yards with one TD and 3 INTs). Look for Atlanta to get back into the win column and cover against Tampa Bay.