The Washington Redskins and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers clash in an NFL preseason betting finale charged with sociopolitical undertones. As it turns out, a Maryland private school principal has requested parents not to send their children wearing clothes that display the Washington franchises’ name or logo, which are “racially demeaning.” So there’s that, but what about the Bucs’ name and logo? Won’t somebody please think of the pirates? They’re a downtrodden minority too.
- Date: Thursday, 31st August
- Time: 7:35 PM
- Venue: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida
Sportsbook NFL Preseason Odds:
Redskins +2½ (-110) 36 (-105)
Buccaneers -2½ (-110) 36 (-115)
The day Nate Sudfeld has been waiting for all year
The final game of the preseason for Nate Sudfeld is like Christmas and his birthday all rolled into one.
With the #Redskins’ starters resting, all eyes are on Nate Sudfeld in the preseason finale #NateHive https://t.co/uyChWhf8wV
— Master Tesfatsion (@MasterTes) August 30, 2017
It doesn’t take a genius to know why Thursday is such a big day for the Indiana University Bloomington product. The other 364 he’s relegated to play third fiddle to starting quarterback Kirk Cousins and backup Colt McCoy, but on Thursday he gets to start and play the entire game as he did last year. It’s like the Fairy Godmother turns him into a real boy for 24 hours. “The thing about Nate is that Colt and Kirk are very selfish when it comes to reps so he doesn’t get a lot,” head coach Jay Gruden told Redskins.com. “So this is a great opportunity for him to show what he can do.” A year ago Sudfeld completed eight passes for 72 yards and a touchdown during a rainstorm at Raymond James Stadium in his one start of the year. Hey, we can be heroes just for one day – it just wasn’t that day. Nonetheless, Sudfeld says he has developed in several areas of the game ever since, he just hasn’t had the opportunity to show his growth.
The final NFL preseason betting chance for one Jeremy McNichols
Tampa Bay rookie running back Jeremy McNichols preseason has been lowlighted for all the wrong reasons on HBO’s Hard Knocks. This is actually one of the few highlights:
According to Bucs head coach Dirk Koetter, he fifth-round pick from Boise State will have one last shot to prove his mettle. “He’s just making too many mistakes on offense and he had a protection error that led to a sack so I took him out at that point [in Saturday’s NFL preseason betting game],” Koetter said via Tampa Bay.com. “He’s going to play a lot on Thursday night and he’s going to get one final chance to show what he can do.” Hard Knocks? Let’s just rename it to Welcome Back, Koetter and have McNichols play Horshack. Doug Martin is suspended for the first three games of the regular season, so the Bucs could go with four running backs, but then again, they could keep just three; namely, Jacquizz Rodgers, Charles Sims and Peyton Barber. “There’s [sic] multiple roster spots … based on your needs at other positions,” Koetter said. “There’s [sic] spots at different positions but based on what you need, some of these spots are a little bit interchangeable.”