It’s GAME DAY at Glory Days Grill – Come watch football all season long!

Bucs game day is approaching, and it’s time for the PewterReport.com staff to offer up its weekly game predictions. Let us know what you think in the article comments section and add your prediction, too.

BUCCANEERS at PATRIOTS

WHEN: Sunday, October 3, 2021 | WHERE: Gillette Stadium | KICKOFF: 8:20 p.m. ET | TV: NBC

PLAY-BY-PLAY: Al Michaels |ANALYST: Chris Collinsworth | SIDELINE: Michelle Tafoya

RADIO: 98 ROCK 97.9 FM | PLAY-BY-PLAY: Gene Deckerhoff | ANALYST: Dave Moore | SIDELINE: T.J. Rives

SPANISH RADIO: 96.1 FM | PLAY-BY-PLAY: Carlos Bohorquez | ANALYST: Martin Gramatica

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live game day chat, starting at noon. on Sunday all the way through to the final whistle.
Click the link below to access the Game Day Thread on the Red Board.

JOIN THE GAME DAY THREAD BY CLICKING HERE AND JOIN THE DISCUSSION!

– Game Days At Glory Days Grill –

Make every day MEATIER with Glory Days Grill’s Glory Burger! The Glory Burger was voted Tampa Magazine’s 2021 Best Burger and you can score it for a specialty price of only $8.99 on Mondays.

This award-winning burger is topped with their signature homemade Glory sauce, a fried onion ring, crisp bacon, Pepper Jack cheese and a fried egg. You can even upgrade to the 1/2-pound Proprietary Blend. Hand-crafted from a premium blend of brisket, chuck, sirloin and short rib.

Or try the MVP Burger! It’s a hand-crafted 1/2-pound Proprietary Blend  burger topped with cheddar cheese, grilled onions and a hickory chipotle sauce. Other favorites include the Swiss Mushroom Onion Burger, the Bacon Cheddar Burger and the Burger Blue, which features blue cheese crumbles, balsamic drizzle, caramelized onions and blue cheese dressing.

Glory Days Grill

Brandon | Brooksville | Carrollwood | Fort Myers | Lakeland | New Tampa | Odessa/Lutz
Palm Harbor | Riverview | Sarasota | St. Petersburg | Tallahassee | Tyrone | Wesley Chapel

Scott Reynolds: Bucs Bounce Back With Prime Time Win

I should’ve stuck with my original season predictions where I said the Bucs would lose to the Rams en route to a 13-4 season. But no. I had to get caught up in the team’s 10-game winning streak and didn’t want to pick against their momentum. Okay, that’s over. Now back to my original script, which says a win in New England. There is no way the Bucs lose this game against an inferior Patriots team that is in the middle of a rebuild.

Bucs QB Tom Brady and TE Rob Gronkowski – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

There is also no way Tom Brady loses this game at New England to Bill Belichick. This game may not be a Super Bowl to Brady, but it’s close. Both he and Rob Gronkowski, who returned to practice on Friday, will want to have great games for the fans who used to cheer them on up in Foxborough. I expect Brady to have a big night with at least 300 yards passing and a couple of scores, including one to Gronkowski, who will have a special Gronk spike for the New Englanders.

Tampa Bay’s run game shows some signs of life, which is good. And the Bucs defense looks much better this week facing a rookie quarterback in Mac Jones. I expect a couple of interceptions and a couple of sacks in a confidence-building performance for Todd Bowles’ unit. This won’t be the blowout that some expect, but I expect the Bucs to lead the entire game and win by a touchdown.

Reynolds’ Score Prediction: Buccaneers 30, Patriots 23
Reynolds’ Season Record: 2-1

Jon Ledyard: Bucs Win, But Don’t Expect A Blowout

On paper, the Bucs are a better team than New England. I don’t think many analysts would debate that. But Bill Belichick has a unique level of familiarity with Tom Brady that will make this an unusually tough game for the Tampa Bay quarterback. For the better part of Belichick’s tenure in New England, nothing has been easy against the Patriots defense. Now, with more talent than the unit had a year ago, it’s naive of us to expect the Bucs offense will railroad this defense like they did to Atlanta or Dallas.

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick – Photo by: USA Today

Still, I believe the Bucs’ weapons – and Brady – will eventually be too much for the Patriots to defend. Even without Stephon Gilmore, the Patriots pass defense is the league’s second best – albeit against a 3-game slate of below average quarterbacks. The Bucs will be a massive upgrade in opponent for New England, while Tampa Bay’s beleaguered secondary will have a chance to right themselves after facing three of the best pass-catching groups in the NFL. The Patriots weapons are solid, but not elite.

The time is right for the Bucs defense to make a statement. In a game where I would be surprised to see the Bucs roll up 400+ yards and 30+ points, Todd Bowles’ unit needs to have some pride and dominate this game. Mac Jones is a rookie who has struggled and played conservatively through three games. If the Bucs can take control of the contest early, they’ll put the Patriots at a disadvantage. Jones will get better, but this can’t be the week he breaks out. If Bowles’ defense can’t make a positive impact in this game, the alarm bells should be ringing all over Tampa Bay.

Ledyard’s Score Prediction: Buccaneers 24, Patriots 13
Ledyard’s Season Record: 3-0

Matt Matera: Brady & Gronk Bring Bucs A Win In “The Return”

There is just no way Tom Brady and the Bucs are going to lose this game in he and Rob Gronkowski’s return to New England. Brady and the Bucs went 4-1 in games following a loss, though this isn’t your typical bounce back regular season game. This one has such a high magnitude that it’ll probably go down as the most-watched regular seasons game in the history of the NFL.

Bucs QB Tom Brady and TE Rob Gronkowski – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

I expect Tom Brady to be dialed in for all four quarters. Not that he hasn’t been this season, but you know he wants to stick it to his old team. The return of Antonio Brown will prove to be beneficial. New England has a tough defense that Brady is obviously familiar with, but you can only keep the Bucs out of the end zone for so long. With a motivated Brady and everyone available, they’ll be able to control most of the game. You know Gronkowski is getting a couple of targets in the red zone.

Is this the week that the Bucs defense bounces back? Not yet, but I do think they’ll get to the quarterback more. This is the worst offense that they’ll have to play against so far this season, so I think we’ll see Todd Bowles mix up some zone and man-to-man coverages. They’ll need to get pressure when they send the blitz, so a lot is on Devin White. I think the Bucs get at least one interception to set up the offense to put the game in hand for Brady and Gronk’s return.

Matera’s Score Prediction: Buccaneers 30, Patriots 20
Matera’s Season Record: 2-1

JC Allen: Brady and Bucs Eek Out Close Win

An emotional week for both teams, it all comes to a head on Sunday. Brady will return back to where it all began in Foxboro to a raucous Gillette Stadium crowd. The student vs the teacher, the Jedi vs the Sith, or whatever you want to call it, Tom Brady and the Bucs vs Bill Belichick and the Pats is one of the most hyped matchups in sports history. Will it live up to expectations?

Bill Belichick and Tom Brady – Photo by: USA Today

Brady and Belichick know so much about each other this will truly be a test of wills. The Bucs offense struggled a bit last week against the Rams and Belichick is the master of taking away what teams do best. For the Bucs, that’s passing the ball. The run game has been abysmal for Tampa Bay, so it will need to move the ball through the air to have any sort of success against this Patriots defense. That’s where Belichick’s expertise will come in handy. Along with Josh McDaniels’ close relationship with Brady and knowing how he sees the game. Many of these Patriots defenders know Brady’s tendencies and what he likes to do with the ball in certain situations from practicing against him extensively. It might not be so easy for the Bucs to move up and down the field at will.

On the defensive side, the impending return of Jason Pierre-Paul will surely help the energy and schematic flexibility for the Bucs. While losing Jamel Dean will put a lot of pressure on the front seven to get home, something they’ve struggled with early on this season. The Pats will target the weak link in a secondary ravished by injuries while the Bucs will see what newly signed Richard Sherman can provide for them. Look for the Pats to target which ever tight end draws Devin Whites assignment, as he has struggled in coverage this year as well.  The problem is the Bucs have so many weapons to beat you with, while the Pats lack the defenders to cover all of them. In the end the Bucs win a close, hard fought game to avoid back-to-back losses.

Allen’s Score Prediction: Buccaneers 27, Patriots 24
Allen’s Season Record: 2-1

Paul Atwal: Theatrics End At Kickoff And Champs Dominate

Adele-backed montages and who-called-whom-from-where speculation aside, there’s still an actual football game to be played on Sunday. And it looks good for the Buccaneers. The Patriots defense has lived in a single-high safety world through three games, predominantly featuring Rip/Liz Cover 3 zone match coverages as well as variations of man free. This would be a big no-no against Tampa Bay. But Bill Belichick’s defenses have a history of playing classical music one week and experimental psychedelic rock the next. Many have speculated that Belichick will concoct some genius new blitz packages that’ll catch Brady off guard. Aside from an odd third and long, I don’t see that happening. Instead, I think the Patriots will sell out to stop the deep passing attack. Two safeties deep, light boxes, and a desperate plea for the Bucs to run the ball.

Bucs QB Tom Brady and OC Byron Leftwich – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Belichick will hope that this approach lulls Byron Leftwich into a game plan similar to the one against the Saints in the 2020 Divisional Round when, outside of two-minutes remaining in the half, the Bucs ran the ball 19 times on first down and passed it only four times. Leftwich has moved away from that this year. He knows that a pass-heavy attack, even if not as pass-heavy as the last three weeks, is this team’s clearest path to success. Tampa Bay has also done a better job of attacking two-high coverages through the air, scheming (yes, scheming!) open underneath passes and being patient when necessary.

On the other side, the Patriots offense just isn’t that threatening. Todd Bowles’ dinged-up defense has had a slow start, but rookie quarterback Mac Jones is a far cry from Dak Prescott, Matt Ryan, and Matthew Stafford. The best bet against Jones is to force him to move through his progressions. He’s done a respectable job pre-snap at identifying coverages and knowing where to go with the ball. When all of that is right and his first read is open, he looks sharp. Clean drop-backs and accurate, in-rhythm throws. Jones doesn’t look nearly as polished when he has to figure things out post-snap. The good news is that zone coverages, which is what the Bucs usually play, typically require more post-snap processing from quarterbacks than man coverages (where the quarterback can often just identify his best match-up pre-snap). To add another layer of difficulty for the young quarterback, Bowles might consider playing his cornerbacks a bit tighter and blitzing less often. After all, Jones already wants to get the ball out as quickly as possible. But honestly, even if Bowles doesn’t do any of this, it won’t really matter. The Patriots offense just isn’t good enough to keep up with the Buccaneers offense.

Atwal’s Score Prediction: Buccaneers 41, Patriots 17
Atwal’s Season Record: 3-0

Kasey Hudson: Brady Closes His New England Chapter With A Win

Tampa Bay heads to New England with a clear capability to redeem themselves after last week’s loss to the Rams. The Bucs offense still managed some optimistic strides against the Rams as Tom Brady completed 41-of-55 passes and threw for 432 yards. So what was not working for the Bucs’ offense last Sunday? The run game still, third down conversions, and protecting Brady in the pocket. Brady spoke briefly of the Patriots defense Thursday in his press conference. Stating that they have quality playmakers and naming off a few. The Patriots defense ranks second in yards allowed, which can present a challenge for the Bucs, meaning the run game is going to have to find a way to be consistent Sunday. With Tampa Bay averaging 34.3 points per game and the return of Antonio Brown, this offense is talented enough to keep the New England defense on their toes with little to no error.

Bucs TE Rob Gronkowski and QB Tom Brady – Photo by: USA Today

The real question is … will an underwhelming Tampa Bay defense show up this weekend?  The Bucs defense has allowed 601 yards and tallied three sacks for the season thus far. With or without Jason Pierre-Paul who will be a game time decision, Shaq Barrett needs to be more present and dominant coming off the edge. Joe Tryon-Shoyinka has progressed game by game and managed well against the Rams. But it is the secondary that has to step up the most. The Bucs scored an upgrade with veteran Richard Sherman joining the roster. But coach Arians mentioned today that Sherman dressing out is more of a precautionary measure as Jamal Dean has been ruled out of Sunday’s game. Although Sherman is still learning the Bucs playbook, Mac Jones completed 30-of-51 passes and threw for 270 yards against the Saints, so this could be quality grounds for him to get acclimated as a Buccaneer.

When all is said and done, this game really comes down to who has more to prove and more to lose between Brady and Bill Belichick. With so little said between the pair, fans recognize an odd breakup. Brady stands by his departure being amicable and this just being another opponent, but Brady beating Belichick will silently back up Brady’s smarts and tremendous work ethic versus just being well coached.

Hudson’s Score Prediction: Buccaneers 31, Patriots 17
Hudson’s Season Record: 2-1