The Buccaneers’ rushing attack faces an Atlanta defense that has been stingy against the run, while the Falcons bring the sharper passing numbers.
At 2-5, Tampa Bay has little room to spare against 3-4 Atlanta, with the Buccaneers ranked No. 16 in the power index and the Falcons No. 19. Across their last five games, Atlanta is 3-2 and Tampa Bay 2-3; the Buccaneers are coming off a 43-13 win, while the Falcons most recently beat San Francisco 29-20. Tampa Bay averages 146.4 rushing yards per game, led by Bucky Irving’s 558 yards and four touchdowns, against an Atlanta defense allowing 88.9 rushing yards per game. Atlanta counters with Bijan Robinson’s 704 rushing yards and four touchdowns, while Michael Penix Jr. has thrown 9 touchdown passes against 1 interception and Tampa Bay allows 233.7 passing yards per game. The deciding factor may be whether Tampa can sustain its ground game and limit Robinson, or Atlanta can use Penix’s passing efficiency to finish drives with touchdowns instead of field goals.