It’s taken five long years and a move away from the New England Patriots, but Tom Brady is finally an underdog again. The new Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback isn’t forecast to win his Week 1 game against the New Orleans Saints, breaking a 74-game regular season streak of being favored by oddsmakers. The last team favored to beat him were Rex Ryan’s 2015 Buffalo Bills, favored at home by a single point (Brady’s Patriots won, 40-32).
That’s backed up by the BetMGM Sportsbook, which has the Saints as 3.5-point favorites. Taken with their over/under of 49.5, that projects a final score in the ballpark of Saints 27, Buccaneers 23.
For the curious, neither of the other NFC South teams taking the field in Week 1 are favored to win their games. The Atlanta Falcons are 2.5-point home underdogs versus the Seattle Seahawks, while the Las Vegas Raiders are 3.5-point road favorites against the Carolina Panthers.
Whoever wins this season opener between the Saints and Buccaneers could have a real leg up on the race for an NFC South crown. The Saints have won that title three years in a row, but Brady’s impact on Tampa Bay is sure to make things more competitive than usual.
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