Bucs Set to Play First Home Game Against Packers

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers host the Green Bay Packers at home Sunday at 4:25 p.m. The Bucs are coming off two strong wins on the road and will play for the first time in front of their home crowd. The Green Bay Packers are coming off a home win against the Chicago Bears and are starting to show promise without Davante Adams.

Both teams have a high performing offense that can be explosive through their run and pass game. However, the Bucs garner a slight advantage on defense which could be the deciding factor in a high-scoring game.

Bucs

Tampa Bay has multiple players on the injury report going into week three with 12 players on the injury list. Five are wide receivers, as Julio Jones, Scott Miller, Chris Godwin, Breshad Perriman and Russell Gage are all on the list. Mike Evans leads the team with 132 receiving yards on eight receptions in two games. However, Evans won’t be playing on Sunday due to a one-game suspension. He was involved in a scuffle on the field last week with New Orleans Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore.

Without Evans, the Bucs will have to lean on running back Leonard Fournette who leads the team in rushing yards. Through two weeks, he has recorded 192 yards on 45 rushes and he averages 96 yards per game.

How we sleep at night knowing we lead the league in sacks pic.twitter.com/pccwGFuDyJ

— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) September 22, 2022

Defensively, Tampa Bay has been one of the best units this season. Linebacker Devin White leads the team in tackles with 19 and leads the team in sacks with three. Cornerback Jamel Dean has covered the deep ball well with two interceptions. Safety Mike Edwards also has an interception this season.

Packers

Green Bay also comes into week three with a stacked list of players on the injured list. Sammy Watkins, the Packers’ leading receiver, is “unspecified” when it comes to game status. He is listed with an injured hamstring and had limited participation during Wednesday practice and did not participate in Thursday practice.

Dual offensive threat Aaron Jones has the second highest rushing and receiving yards on the team. Jones has 65 reception yards on six receptions while also having 181 rushing yards on 20 attempts.

https://twitter.com/packers/status/1573055252110229509

The defense for the Packers has been mediocre, so far. The defense struggled against Minnesota in week one but bounced back in week two against Chicago. In two games, star cornerback Jaire Alexander has an interception and eight tackles. The team as a whole has 129 tackles lead by linebackers De’Vondre Campbell, Quay Walker and Preston Smith with 15, 13 and 10 tackles, respectively.

Kickoff is set for 4:25 p.m. at Raymond James Stadium.