Ravens vs. Buccaneers Picks, Predictions Week 8: Can Tampa Bay Rebound on Thursday Night Football?

Top NFL picks for the Week 8 Thursday Night Football matchup between the Ravens and Buccaneers.
Mike Spector
Mike Spector

Last Updated: October 27, 2022 4:47 AM EDT • 4 minute read

Bettors beware! We have some reverse line movement ahead of Week 8's Thursday Night Football game between the Baltimore Ravens and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Read on as we try to navigate the waters with our top Ravens-Buccaneers picks.

The Ravens could have the honor of handing Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady just the second three-game losing skid of his career, and his first since 2002 with the New England Patriots, with a win on Thursday Night Football.

The Ravens will also be the toughest team the Buccaneers have faced in this three game stretch. Tampa Bay has lost back-to-back games to the Pittsburgh Steelers and Carolina Panthers after closing as a double-digit favorite each of the last two Sundays. The Bucs managed just three points against a Panthers team that fired head coach Matt Rhule two weeks prior.

Baltimore has alternated wins and losses all season and is coming off a 23-20 home win over the Cleveland Browns. The Ravens failed to cover the spread for the third straight game.

Here are our Ravens-Buccaneers NFL picks for Week 8 (odds via FanDuel Sportsbook and DraftKings Sportsbook; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).

Check out our all our top NFL picks for Week 9, as well as our odds and lines analysis and against-the-spread power rankings.

Ravens vs. Buccaneers Game Info

Date: Thursday, Oct. 27, 8:15 p.m. ET
TV: Prime Video
Location: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, FL
Weather: 83 degrees, 24% chance of precipitation, 5-mph SSW wind

Ravens vs. Buccaneers Odds

Ravens vs. Buccaneers Odds Analysis

Baltimore opened the week as a 1.5-point favorite but that line has flipped to a market consensus of Buccaneers -2 as of Thursday morning. While that's back close to the offseason look-ahead line of Tampa Bay -2.5, it's contrary to the in-season betting action. The Ravens have drawn 55% of the tickets and 61% of the handle.

The consensus opening Over/Under of 44.5 has risen to 46 as of Thursday morning with 64% of the handle coming from just 43% of the tickets on the Over.

Ravens vs. Buccaneers Picks

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Ravens vs. Buccaneers ATS Pick

Buccaneers +1.5 (-108) ★★★

Tampa Bay is 1-4 in its last five games following a 2-0 start. While losses to the Green Bay Packers and Kansas City Chiefs are forgivable, losing to the Pittsburgh Steelers and Carolina Panthers is not, even though those were on the road. Tampa Bay lost each of its last two games as a double-digit favorite, the first time that has happened in consecutive weeks in Brady's career. However, we expect the best out of Brady in the national spotlight.

Brady averaged 5.9 yards per attempt last week, but a drop by wide receiver Mike Evans on a would-be touchdown in the first quarter may have changed the game's entire complexion.

Tampa Bay has arguably the best linebacker trio in the league in Devin White, Lavonte David, and Shaquil Barrett. We look for the three of them to show their versatility in spying Ravens QB Lamar Jackson and keeping him in the pocket, preventing him from running wild the week after he became the second quarterback ever with 500-plus rushing yards in each of his first five seasons.

Jackson was 12-0 straight up against NFC teams before the Ravens' Week 6 loss to the New York Giants, but we expect Brady to avoid the second three-game losing skid of his career.

Ravens vs. Buccaneers O/U Pick

Under 46 (-110) ★★★

Brady is coming off his fifth career start in which his team scored three or fewer points. The Buccaneers also became the first team with 75 or fewer rushing yards in six consecutive games since the 2017 Cincinnati Bengals.

On the other side, entering Week 7, Jackson's fourth-quarter performances were concerning. Jackson's 28 QBR ranked 28th among all quarterbacks, while his 1-4 TD-INT ratio ranked 29th. After being outscored 7-3 in the fourth quarter by the Browns last week, the Ravens' minus-46 fourth-quarter point differential is the worst in the league. It's also a big reason why Baltimore has blown three double-digit leads this year. 

Unders are 14-7 in primetime games this season, and we look for that trend to continue in this game.

Ravens vs. Buccaneers Prop Pick

Buccaneers to win by 1-6 (+370) ★★★

Baltimore is 12-3-2 ATS since 2019, when the line is between +3 and -3, but failed to cover in its last instance in a game like that against Cincinnati in Week 5. Meanwhile, Tampa Bay entered Week 3 with four straight covers in games with spreads ranging from +3 to -3 but failed to cover (and lost outright) in back-to-back such games against the Packers and Chiefs in Weeks 3 and 4.

Therefore, given the recent results of both teams in games in this point range, we would not expect a blowout, making the +370 odds for this prop enticing.

Where to Bet on Ravens vs. Buccaneers Picks

Ravens-Buccaneers picks made 10/25/2022 at 6:13 a.m. ET.

Written by:
Mike Spector
Mike started in the sports writing industry in July 2019, and gained a lot of followers in his first year after finishing with the No. 2 overall record in an annual NFL betting competition, which made picks against the spread, and from an Over/Under and moneyline perspective. Mike is an avid fan of the NFL, MLB, tennis, and all college sports. In his opinion, March Madness is the best sporting event there is, and he's especially euphoric starting with conference tournament time in college basketball. Mike's a big advocate of "fading the public" and making plays that are contrarian, constantly citing that "there are reasons why they have those big shiny buildings in Las Vegas." When making wagers, Mike leans on his NFL experience and always scours the best odds at all of the major sports betting sites, where he mostly sifts through DraftKings, FanDuel, BetMGM, and bet365. He's tried several others and is of the firm belief that bettors should not just stick to one sportsbook, as there is always likely better value to be had with the same wager. In addition, while Mike received his undergraduate degree from Villanova University, he has no issue betting against the Wildcats when it comes to college basketball wagering, and suggests other bettors should always put their “head” before their “hearts.”