The Atlanta Falcons are a team starting a new era. Arthur Smith is now in his second season and will be without Matt Ryan, who was traded in the off-season to the Colts. Ryan was the franchise’s all-time passing leader, and a former league MVP, so the fate of Atlanta’s season will rest on either veteran QB Marcus Mariota or rookie Desmond Ridder. They do have weapons though, with tight end Kyle Pitts and receiver Drake London giving options to whichever signal caller they put on the field.

The Falcons may have jettisoned their veteran QB, but the Buccs are lucky theirs chose to stick around. Tom Brady reversed his retirement before it had even begun, but they will have a new coach in Todd Bowles after Bruce Arians retired for real. Tampa will have their goals no lower than the Super Bowl, with much of the team that won in 2020 still in Florida. Brady led the league in passing last year, and a receiving corps of Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, and Russell Gage should be dangerous again.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have won 4 straight against their division rival, with both of last season’s games being comfortable wins for the Florida team. NFL betting odds will likely predict a similar result this year, so expect a comfortable Buccs home win. Scoring-wise, the Over/Under should be high with a Tampa offense that looks very strong on paper, and Tampa Tom should also throw for plenty of yards against a porous Falcons defense.

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