The two teams that I thought had the best chance of winning a Super Bowl with long odds play tonight when the National Football League closes out the second week of play with a pair of Monday Night Football matchups. At 4:00 p.m. Pacific time, the Houston Texans will entertain the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Three hours later, the Los Angeles Chargers visit the Las Vegas Raiders.
I like both the Texans and Chargers for their chances of beating long odds this year and earning a Super Bowl berth. But, if I was to ask you what teams in the NFL have the longest current streaks at winning their division titles who would you say?
Okay, you’re right, the Kansas City Chiefs have won the AFC West nine straight years, that is the longest. Who else might you suggest for the second longest? The Buffalo Bills, Philadelphia Eagles, how about the San Francisco 49ers, Minnesota Vikings or Los Angeles Rams?
The Bills do have the second longest streak, they have captured the AFC East Division five straight years, but the team with the next most consecutive division titles is the one that surprises most people, it is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. They are like the Rodney Dangerfield of the NFL, getting no respect.
They won a Super Bowl five years ago, which was the last season they didn’t win their division but gained a playoff berth as a Wild Card. That year, they beat the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LV with Tom Brady their quarterback. Brady guided them to division titles the following two seasons and then, after his retirement, the Buccaneers reignited the career of one-time over-all first round draft selection Baker Mayfield.
In his two plus seasons as the Bucs starter, Mayfield has tossed 72 touchdown passes against only 26 interceptions. That includes three scoring strikes last week without being picked in a 23-20 road win over the Atlanta Falcons. After we saw what the Falcons defense did in suffocating the Minnesota Vikings last night, that effort in Atlanta might even need to be considered more impressive than initially gauged.
Okay, the Bucs start tonight’s action, but our pick to upset the football world and win this season’s Super Bowl is in action in the later game. That would be the Los Angeles Chargers, who renew their longtime rivalry against the Silver and Black in this primetime contest. Both the Chargers and Raiders won their openers, Las Vegas downing the New England Patriots on the road and the Chargers beating the Chiefs in Brazil.
The story in Raiders land is the arrival of new head coach Pete Carroll, who lured quarterback Geno Smith from his old team, the Seattle Seahawks, to guide his new one.
So far, so good.
Could the Chargers be down a notch in effort following their satisfying win over the Chargers? The victory in the first of seven International Games the NFL will stage this season was the first time in his career that Los Angeles Quarterback Justin Herbert got a win when battling the Chiefs Patrick Mahomes.
I like the Chargers, but laying more than a field goal on the road in a division game with the Chargers off that huge win appears a little dicey.
No, I’m much more confident to offer one more dose of no respect for the Buccaneers tonight. It is not that I don’t respect Tampa Bay, it’s just that they are on the road after an opening victory and meeting a talented Houston squad at home off a road loss.
That works for me … because I think it will work for C.J. Stroud and company.
Qoxhi Picks: Houston Texans (-2½) over Tampa Bay Buccaneers