49ers vs. Bucs Total Prediction
The San Francisco 49ers travel to Tampa this Sunday to take on the Bucs at 1:00 p.m. ET. With the Bucs turning back to Jameis Winston, is the over a smart play for bettors?
Game Snapshot
255 San Francisco 49ers at 256 Tampa Bay Bucs
1:00 p.m. ET, Sunday, November 25
Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida
Public Betting Trends
According to oddsmakers from online sports book BetNow.eu, the Bucs are 3-point favorites to beat the 49ers. The total, meanwhile, sits at 54 points. As of this writing, 54% of the public betting tickets are on the Bucs to cover the point spread.
San Francisco 49ers
Coach Kyle Shanahan said Nick Mullens will continue to be the 49ers’ starting quarterback until he says otherwise. That means Mullens will be the starter coming out of the 49ers’ Week 11 bye when they visit Tampa Bay. The second-year UDFA took advantage of the tanking Raiders in his debut two weeks ago, and he played well enough on Monday to keep the job over C.J. Beathard. In total, Mullens has completed 70% of his passes for 512 yards with four touchdowns and two interceptions.
Tampa Bay
The Tampa Bay Times reports the Bucs will go back to Jameis Winston as their starting quarterback for Week 12. It’s hardly a surprise after Ryan Fitzpatrick threw seven interceptions in 2.5 games in place of Winston. Winston is going to turn the ball over a ton, as well, but he does so in a slightly more dignified fashion than FitzMagic. In a pass-heavy offense locked into weekly shootouts by the Bucs’ terrible defense, Winston will be a QB1 more weeks than not. That includes Week 12 against the 49ers.
NFL Betting Trends
San Francisco
The under is 4-1 in the 49ers’ last five games played in Week 12 but the over is 15-4 in their last 19 games coming off a bye week.
Tampa Bay
The over is 7-1 in the Bucs’ last eight conference games and is 9-2 in their last 11 games overall.
Prediction
Kyle Shanahan knows this Tampa Bay defense from his days in Atlanta and the Bucs currently employ one of the worst defensive units in the game. Shanahan should dial up another strong game plan for Mullens, who benefits from heading into his third start of the season. San Francisco shouldn’t show much resistance for Winston and Co. either. I expect a shootout here.
NFL Week 12 Prediction: 49ers/Bucs over 54