Of all of the unpredictable things in the world, perhaps the most unpredictable is how a rookie quarterback will play in his first game in the NFL. What's worse than one unpredictable rookie quarterback? Two unpredictable rookie quarterbacks.
The only good news for bettors? BookMaker has live betting available for the duel between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Tennessee Titans.
WHEN THE TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS HAVE THE BALL
Over the course of the last several days, bettors have cooled just a bit on Jameis Winston. He was once a +310 favorite to win the Offensive Rookie of the Year award, but now, he's up to +420.
Winston had a poor preseason, going just 23-of-47 for 311 yards. He has yet to throw a touchdown and was picked off twice, but more notably, he was sacked seven times behind a porous offensive line.
The Titans weren't great in terms of rushing the passer last year, but if there was ever a game which they would improve in, this would be the one. Drives are very likely to be cut short by sacks and turnovers because of Winston's propensity to hang onto the football too long, a problem he had in college at times, too. Live bettors should know that and understand that there are going to be a lot of three and out situations to help slow the pace of this game down a lot.
Do note that starting corner Jason McCourty is out for the Titans with a groin injury, while the man he would be going up against, Mike Evans could end up on the injury report to start off the week for Tampa Bay as well.
WHEN THE TENNESSEE TITANS HAVE THE BALL
The reason why the odds for Winston to win the Offensive Rookie of the Year award went up so much was because Marcus Mariota has looked so darn good.
Ken Whisenhunt is an offensive genius. He isn't asking Mariota to do all that much aside from being careful with the football. Throwing the ball away is fine. Checking the ball down is fine. Heck, taking a sack is fine, too. But just don't turn the ball over.
Mariota threw for 326 yards and a TD in his first preseason as a pro, but most importantly, he completed 70 percent of his passes and only threw one pick. If he can keep up this quarterback rating of 102.9 which he sported in the preseason, the Titans are going to be alright.
However, Tennessee has a similar problem to Tampa Bay. The running game is non-existent for Mariota, knowing that Bishop Sankey has already proven he isn't the answer to this team's woes, and the offensive line gave up 52 sacks last year and hasn't been improved upon in the offseason.
Thus, it is clearly a good idea for live bettors to focus on the under when Tennessee has the ball, too. There will be a lot of seven-minute drives for the Titans this year, and you want to be on the right side of those, especially if they end in just three points or turnovers.
TREND TO TRACK
It's no surprise that these two teams, both of which drafted quarterbacks at No. 1 and No. 2 respectively in the NFL Draft, have played a lot of under games of late. Tampa Bay went 9-1 for under backers in its last 10 games last season, while the under cashed in four straight Titans games to end the year, too.
That said, the total in this game is quite low at just 41 after opening at 42, but there might be better opportunities in live betting, particularly right after touchdown drives.
The NFL odds for this Sunday contest were first released by BookMaker, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were positioned as 3-point favorites with a total of 42. Now you can wager in-game while the action unfolds with BookMaker's live betting option.
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook! The game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Tennessee Titans is set for Sunday, September 13, 2015, at 4:25 p.m. ET at Raymond James Stadium. The matchup will be televised live on CBS.
