The Worksheet, a fantasy football overview by Rich Hribar, breaking down everything you need to know for the Week 16 Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Carolina Panthers Sunday afternoon game.
| Tampa Bay | Rank | @ | Carolina | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| -10.5 | Spread | 10.5 | ||
| 27.5 | Implied Total | 17 | ||
| 29.3 | 1 | Points/Gm | 19.4 | 25 |
| 21.9 | 13 | Points All./Gm | 22.4 | 16 |
| 67.5 | 4 | Plays/Gm | 64.9 | 11 |
| 63.9 | 19 | Opp. Plays/Gm | 60.6 | 3 |
| 6 | 3 | Off. Yards/Play | 4.7 | 31 |
| 5.2 | 6 | Def. Yards/Play | 4.9 | 2 |
| 33.12% | 32 | Rush% | 42.68% | 15 |
| 66.88% | 1 | Pass% | 57.32% | 18 |
| 33.41% | 1 | Opp. Rush % | 46.58% | 29 |
| 66.59% | 32 | Opp. Pass % | 53.42% | 4 |
- The Buccaneers are 2-5 against the spread on the road this season, tied with the Bears for the worst rate in the league.
- Tampa Bay is averaging 35.7 yards per possession (fourth) while the Panthers are averaging 26.7 yards per drive (31st).
- Carolina is last in the NFL in expected points added via their passing offense (-49.9).
- Carolina is averaging 5.3 yards per passing play, ahead of only the Jaguars (5.2 yards).
- Tampa Bay is allowing 5.8 yards per passing play, fourth in the league.
- The Panthers are allowing 5.5 yards per passing play, third in the league.
Trust = spike production for that player
Quarterback
Tom Brady: Dealing with multiple in-game injuries and an arch-nemesis New Orleans defense, Brady had his worst game of the season on Sunday night, completing 54.2% of his passes for 4.5 yards per attempt. It was just his second game this season without a touchdown pass and first with single-digit scoring output for fantasy.
Brady and the Bucs will get Antonio Brown back in the fold this week and there is still hope that Mike Evans can play. If both are on the field this week, that is a huge lift from where we left off Sunday night. If Brady has Brown and Evans in the lineup this week, that gives him more appeal as a back-end QB1.
Carolina has been a good defense throughout the year despite their overall issues. The Panthers are allowing 12.8 passing points per game (fifth), fourth in yards allowed per pass attempt (6.6 Y/A), and first in the NFL in pressure rate. The Panthers blitz at the league’s third-highest rate, but we can anticipate that they will dial that down as opponents are blitzing Brady on only 21.9% of his dropbacks, 38th in the league.