The Buccaneers vs. Lions bring us the marquee matchup of the week on Monday Night Football tonight. The showdown between two of the NFC's best — the Bucs at 5-1 and Lions at 4-2 — kicks off at Ford Field in Detroit, Mich., at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN tonight.
Bucs QB Baker Mayfield and Lions QB Jared Goff headline this matchup, each averaging over 2 passing touchdowns per game leading two of the top six scoring offenses in the league.
Below, we’ll take a look at the Bucs vs. Lions prediction and PrizePicks picks tonight in this electric Monday Night Football game.
Bucs vs. Lions Prediction for Monday Night Football Tonight
The Bucs roll into Monday night at the top of the NFC standings with a 5-1 record after a 30-19 win against San Francisco.
Bucs QB Baker Mayfield has been playing at an MVP-level with four fourth-quarter comebacks so far this season. This Bucs offense comes into Week 7’s game of the week with the sixth-highest-scoring offense (27.5 points per game) as they look to extend their winning streak to three in a row in a pivotal battle between two top NFC teams.
The Lions were riding high into their Sunday Night Football matchup against the struggling Kansas City Chiefs.
However, Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes and the offense came to play on Sunday Night Football, putting up 30 points in a 30-17 win against Detroit. Detroit QB Jared Goff and the offense uncharacteristically struggled, accumulating just 297 total yards and failing to eclipse 100 yards on the ground for the first time in four games.
Detroit will be looking for a big bounce-back win to head into the bye week with momentum when they welcome Mayfield and the Bucs to town on Monday Night Football.
Tampa Bay Bucs
- It’s been confirmed that WR Chris Godwin and RB Bucky Irving will be out on MNF, while WR Emeka Egbuka will play despite a hamstring injury suffered last week.
- Mayfield and the Bucs are 4-1 after trailing in the fourth quarter this season.
- The Bucs will get back WR Mike Evans after being out for three games with a hamstring injury.
Detroit Lions
- Detroit will be without key pieces in its secondary, with both safeties Brian Branch (suspended) and Kerby Joseph out, along with CBs Terrion Arnold and Avonte Maddox also sidelined.
- The Lions are 2-0 at home, where Goff has passed for 502 yards and 7 TDs with a 70.9 completion percentage.
- The Detroit Lions lead the all-time series 33-30 (including playoffs) as they come into this MNF battle.
Bucs vs. Lions Monday Night Football Picks for PrizePicks Tonight
Here are the top Bucs vs. Lions picks for Monday Night football tonight on PrizePicks real-money NFL game, including both QBs in what has the makings of a shootout.
Bucs QB Baker Mayfield vs. Lions Projection: 242.5 Pass Yards
- Mayfield has been among the league’s best QBs, ranking fourth in passing yards (1,539) and third in passing TDs (12).
- Tampa’s signal caller has been airing it out downfield more than any other QB in the league — Mayfield has 8 TD passes on 20+ yard throws this season (no one has more than four).
- The former Oklahoma Sooner is also first in the league in deep ball attempts (32), third in air yards (1,683), fourth in air yards per attempt (8.6), and has the most explosive plays among all QBs (32).
- This Lions secondary just allowed Mahomes to pass for 257 yards and 3 TDs — this same secondary will be depleted on MNF with four DBs already ruled out for the game.
Lions QB Jared Goff vs. Bucs Projection: 262.5 Pass Yards
- Goff is having an excellent season with 1,390 passing yards and 14 TDs (tied for most in the NFL).
- Detroit’s franchise QB has been by far the most efficient and accurate QB in the league through six weeks — he’s first in the league in QBR (81.7%), true completion percentage (82.5%), clean pocket completion percentage (80.9%), and blitzed completion percentage (76.9%).
- The former California Golden Bear has dissected zone coverage this season with a 77.9% completion percentage and a 111.1 passer rating against it — Tampa runs zone coverage 72.1% of the time.
- No one in the league is better against the blitz than Goff. He leads the league in efficiency rating (137.1), completion rate (76.9%), and EPA per dropback (+.58) against the blitz — Tampa blitzes at the sixth-highest rate (31.5%).
Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown vs. Bucs Projection: 7 Receptions
- Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown has been the most consistent contributor on this Lions’ offense since coming into the league — in 72 games, he has 474 receptions, 5,303 yards, and 39 TDs across four-plus seasons.
- Each of the last three seasons, he’s had 100+ receptions and 141+ targets, which led the team.
- Through six weeks, Detroit’s leading WR is eighth in the league in targets (51), sixth in target share (30.5%), sixth in target rate (29.3%), first in red zone target share (37.9%), and second in receptions (44).
- The former USC Trojan has had at least seven receptions in every game this season — the Bucs have given up 28 receptions on 41 targets (68.2% catch rate) against opposing WRs in their last two games.
Make Bucs vs. Lions Monday Night Football Picks on PrizePicks
The Bucs vs. Lions Week 7 matchup on Monday Night Football gives you plenty of opportunities to flex your NFL knowledge muscles.
Mayfield is looking to continue his historic start to the season and extend Tampa’s winning streak against the Lions. Meanwhile, Goff and this Lions’ offense are looking to bounce back and showcase their scoring prowess in this Monday Night Football scuffle with the Bucs.
With both Bucs and Lions offense dialed to put up points on primetime, you'll have plenty for your NFL PrizePicks projections to build the perfect Lineup to win real money.
All you have to do is make your picks More or Less on player stats to win real money all season long on PrizePicks.
