Tampa Bay Buccaneers @ New Orleans Saints Sun. Jan. 2^nd 2010 1pm EST

The defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints came into Week 16’s matchup with the division-leading Atlanta Falcons on Monday Night Football with their backs against the wall. If Drew Brees and company wanted to win the NFC South division in Week 17 and clinch a playoff spot, they were going to have to get the best of the red hot Falcons.

Even though many people doubted the defending champs ability to pull off the upset, Sean Payton’s squad defied the odds once again and came out victorious while ending the Falcons eight game winning streak. With playoff implications for many teams this week, it’s going to be some great NFL football betting action.

Despite the New Orleans Saints now officially be playoff bound after clinching a playoff spot with a win over the Atlanta Falcons, they will have another tough task ahead of them in the last week of the season against another division rival in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

A few things still have to go in their way in order to clinch the NFC South division title and a first-round bye in the playoffs, but they will greatly improve their chances of doing so with a win over the up and coming Bucs.

Last week quarterback Josh Freeman had the game of his life with 237 passing yards and five touchdown passes in the win over the Seattle Seahawks, but whether or not he can have a repeat performance against the defending champs remains to be seen.

Even though they have no chance of winning the division title, the Bucs do still have an outside chance of clinching a playoff spot if they can beat the Saints and both the Giants and Packers lose this weekend.

The Bucs may be a team with a bright future, but I don’t see them getting the best of Drew Brees and company this weekend.

Odds and lines for this matchup by leading online sportsbooks:

Bookmaker Sportsbook:
Spread: Tampa Bay Buccaneers +7.5 & New Orleans Saints -7.5
Moneyline: Tampa Bay Buccaneers +290 & New Orleans Saints -350
Over/Under: Tampa Bay Buccaneers 110 over & New Orleans Saints 110 under (46.5)

BetDSI Sportsbook:
Spread: Tampa Bay Buccaneers +7.5 & New Orleans Saints -7.5
Moneyline: Tampa Bay Buccaneers +290 & New Orleans Saints -350
Over/Under: Tampa Bay Buccaneers 110 over & New Orleans Saints 110 under (46.5)

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