Tampa Bay Buccaneers Favorites to Win NFC South in 2022
Ever since Tom Brady joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after leaving the New England Patriots almost three seasons ago, Tampa has been the betting favorite to win the NFC South Division in the NFL. Now that Brady has "retired", fans and NFL experts alike have wondered if Tampa will continue their run of great play. With the NFL combine underway and draft quickly approaching, the Bucs have many decisions to make, but that hasn't stopped books from putting out future odds on where they see the Buccaneers at the end of the 2022 season.
According to BetMGM and reported by Larry Holder, the Buccaneers have the best odds to win the division once again this season; followed by the Saints, Panthers, and lastly the Falcons. The overarching theme here between most of the teams in the NFC South is the question mark at quarterback.
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With Brady retiring, the Bucs are left with Blaine Gabbert and Kyle Trask. The Saints could resign Jameis Winston or continue to roll with QB/TE hybrid Taysom Hill. The Panthers have Sam Darnold, but it is still to be seen if he can reach the potential that many thought would lead him to be an NFL-caliber starting QB. As for the Falcons, they have the most solidified option with Matt Ryan coming back, however, Matty Ice is not getting any younger so they may look elsewhere in the draft or free agency market.
There are holes to fill all over the Buccaneers roster once free agency and the draft come around, but I believe that the front office will do its best to retain most of the roster that brought a Lombardi Trophy back to the Bay two seasons ago. If the Bucs are able to do this and somehow make a run for a high-profile QB in free agency they should still be the favorites, much like BetMGM is predicting and to the excitement of the Buccaneer fan base.
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