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    Panthers vs. Buccaneers NFL Week 17 odds, trends: Bettors big on Carolina as Tom Brady could clinch first-ever losing season

    Tampa Bay can clinch the NFC South with a win over Carolina on Sunday.
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    Will the 2022 NFC South join a short and infamous list of divisions to have champions with a losing record? It will if the Carolina Panthers (6-9) win at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-8) on Sunday and complete the season sweep. The Bucs are 3-point favorites at Caesars Sportsbook in what could be Tom Brady's last home game with Tampa Bay, but the public is crushing the surging Panthers.

    The Bucs would repeat as South champions with a win and would be the NFC's fourth seed in the playoffs. They would most likely host No. 5 Dallas in the wild-card round. That would guarantee Brady at least one more game in Tampa after his team finishes Week 18 in Atlanta. There's no doubt Coach Todd Bowles will rest his starters in Atlanta if the Bucs clinch on Sunday.

    A victory would mark Brady's 19th career division title, extending his own quarterback record. A loss would ensure his first career losing season, which is remarkable. Brady's 21 straight seasons as a starting QB without a losing season is eight years longer than any other QB to begin a career in NFL history (Brett Favre managed 13). Brady's eight losses this year already are the most in his career, as are his 11 against-the-spread losses. Tampa Bay is averaging 17.7 team points per game (worst in Brady's career).

    Carolina looked completely lifeless and ready to go into full tank mode following a 13-3 Week 11 loss in Baltimore that dropped the team to 3-8. Starting QB Baker Mayfield was released the next day. However, the Panthers are 3-1 since Sam Darnold replaced Mayfield. Darnold has zero turnovers since Week 12. Brady has nine, tied for the most.

    Panthers interim coach Steve Wilks – who might be earning a realistic shot at the full-time job – has converted Carolina into a 1990s Big Ten team of sorts. The club has the lowest percentage of passing of plays (38%) in the NFL snice Darnold became the starting QB in Week 12 and leads the league in rushing yards per game (187) in that stretch – without Christian McCaffrey, who was traded to San Francisco. In last week's win over Detroit, the Panthers put up a franchise-record 320 rushing yards.

    At Caesars, a whopping 84.2% of the money and 59.6% of the tickets on the spread for Sunday's game are on the Panthers.

    Carolina, which upset Tampa Bay 21-3 in Week 7 when PJ Walker was the QB, wins the division if it wins here and in New Orleans in Week 18. DraftKings lists the Bucs at -350 to win the South, the Panthers at +300 and Saints at +2000. The Falcons have been eliminated. 

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    Matt SeveranceSeverance Pays

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