The San Francisco 49ers’ offensive performance had to be encouraging for Kyle Shanahan. The team scored touchdowns on its first two drives. Despite not getting the running game going, Mac Jones threw for 342 yards without four of his top pass-catching options.
If you caught any of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ game against the Seattle Seahawks, then you know how dangerous Baker Mayfield can be. Baker went 29-for-33 for 379 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
The Bucs are another team that struggles to generate much of a rushing attack. That hasn’t mattered. Emeka Egbuka looks unstoppable. Against Seattle, he caught all seven of his targets for 163 yards and a touchdown. The Seahawks were without their top two cornerbacks, but the Niners’ secondary hasn’t given you much of a reason to believe they can slow down the high-flying Bucs’ passing attack.
In the same breath, you could say the same about Tampa Bay’s defense. Sam Darnold made a handful of high-level throws, but it’s not like he struggled to find success against the Bucs. Darnold went 28-for-34 for 341 yards and four touchdowns. Seattle likely scores more than 35 points if Darnold doesn’t have a throw ricochet off a helmet for an interception.
It’s a game where the 49ers would love to get Ricky Pearsall — Jaxson Smith-Njigba had eight receptions for 132 yards in Week 5 — and Jauan Jennings — Cooper Kupp caught six passes for 59 yards — back in action.
Oddsmakers are expecting another high-scoring game for the 49ers. For the second week in a row, San Francisco has its highest total of the season. FanDuel Sportsbook has Tampa Bay favored by three points, with the total on the game set at 47.5. That’s a project score of around 25-22, Bucs.
Could we see Kyle Shanahan’s aggressiveness carry over into this game? Last week, Shanahan went for it on fourth down in his own territory, while Sean McVay punted on 4th & 1, leading to an Eddy Pinero 59-yard field goal.
Based on everything we’ve seen from both teams through five games, we can expect plenty of points in this contest.
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