Home Game Preview: Baltimore Ravens host Tom Brady, Tampa Bay on Thursday Night Football
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Game Preview: Baltimore Ravens host Tom Brady, Tampa Bay on Thursday Night Football

Roger Gonzalez
baltimore ravens
(© melissamn – Shutterstock)

The 4-3 Baltimore Ravens welcome the struggling 3-4 Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Thursday for Week 8 NFL action.

The Ravens sit atop the AFC North with their 4-3 record and are coming off a 23-20 win over the Cleveland Browns. The Bucs, meanwhile, have stumbled out of the gates at 3-4, having just lost 21-3 at the Carolina Panthers in a shocking score.

Where to watch?

This is the Thursday Night Football game that airs exclusively on Amazon Prime Video. Kickoff is 8:15 p.m. ET.

What to know about the Ravens

The turnovers had been the issue for Baltimore, but they improved on that against Cleveland. Sure, they lost a fumble, but Lamar Jackson was much smarter with the ball and did not force anything. You can tell that the point was driven home with the former Louisville gunslinger as there were times where he threw the ball away or took a short run. Now, another key will be playing smart and trying to limit penalties after doing a fine job against the Browns. Three penalties for 53 yards is something any coach will take as their average. As for facing the Bucs, the offense is absolutely reeling. It feels like only a matter of time before they get it together, but on a short week, you have to like the Ravens chances.

What to know about the Bucs

Things are not going well. They are not scoring, struggling to reach 20 points in their recent games. They have 21 points in their last two games combined, a far cry from the over 30 a game they scored en route to winning Super Bowl 55. Without Rob Gronkowski and with all of the injuries, they are just looking to find some bit of gelling. It may take time, but there is a firm belief that they can get it together. On a short week, easier said than done. They need to get healthy, but they also need to dig deep and finish drives. There are too many silly mistakes that are correctable, but there is an urgency.

Prediction

Baltimore 27, Tampa Bay 20

Roger Gonzalez

Roger Gonzalez

Roger Gonzalez is freelancer for Augusta Free Press. A native of Connecticut that grew up in Charlottesville, he is a graduate of Virginia Tech. He currently is a sportswriter with CBS Sports and has written for The Daily Progress, The Roanoke Times and other newspapers before getting into the digital sports journalism world.