Thursday Night Football Week 15: Buccaneers vs. Rams TV Schedule, Live Stream

Call the Week 15 Thursday Night Football showdown between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and St. Louis Rams an offering of dread and explosive color.

For the 5-8 Rams, the cloud of relocation lingers over what might be the franchise's last homestand in St. Louis. For the visiting Buccaneers, it's all about staying in the playoff hunt, all the while rocking eye-catching duds, as SportsCenter captured:

"

Next Thursday night, the Rams and the Buccaneers will be rocking these Color Rush uniforms. pic.twitter.com/qD0Fc0fC9m

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) December 11, 2015"

The two rookies pictured there show just how much the league's future will be on display Sunday night. Breakout rookie back Todd Gurley leads the Rams, while Jameis Winston has the Buccaneers thinking about a .500 record, not to mention the playoffs. 

Here's a look at everything to know about the matchup.

Viewing Info

When: Thursday, Dec. 17, at 8:25 p.m. ET

Where: Edward Jones Dome, St. Louis, Missouri

Television:  NFL Network

Live Stream:  NFL Game Pass

Tickets: ScoreBig.com

Betting Lines (via Odds Shark):

• Over/Under: 41

• Spread: St. Louis (-2.5)

Team Injury Reports

Player	Position	Status
Bruce Carter	LB	Doubtful
Vincent Jackson	WR	Questionable
Brandon Myers	TE	Day to Day
Gerald McCoy	DT	Probable
Lavonte David	LB	Questionable

Player	Position	Status
Todd Gurley	RB	Probable
Case Keenum	QB	Probable
Zach Hocker	K	Day To Day
Greg Zuerlein	K	Probable
Wes Welker	WR	Probable
Lance Kendricks	TE	Probable
Trumaine Johnson	CB	Probable
Janoris Jenkins	CB	Day To Day

Injury reports courtesy of ESPN.com.

Building the Rally 

If Lovie Smith's Buccaneers aren't careful, they could lose everything Thursday.

Sitting on a 6-7 record, the second-place team in the NFC South isn't as hot as some thought after a 45-17 whipping of the Philadelphia Eagles back in Week 11. Since then, the team is 1-3, with the lone win coming against the hapless 6-7 Atlanta Falcons to complete the season sweep.

Last week in a 24-17 loss to the New Orleans Saints—a team the Buccaneers beat on the road 26-19 earlier this year—Winston mustered just 182 passing yards and Doug Martin 81 rushing yards against a defense allowing the 30th-most passing yards and 32nd-most rushing yards per game.

Now the Buccaneers face playoff elimination if they lose Thursday while Minnesota and Seattle win.

"I think it's a part of our growth as a football team," Smith said, according to ESPN.com. "The same goals we had are still there. Nothing has been decided, so we're still talking about the same things."

Growth would be the ideal word. The Rams allow just 20.8 points per game, so Winston's going to have to break his streak of three games without multiple touchdown passes. Martin has rushed for 95 yards or more in three of his last four, but it's important his games below that threshold don't develop into a streak.

Thursday decides whether this edition of the Buccaneers blossoms or wilts.

Building on the Positives 

The Rams hit rock bottom in Week 13, a 27-3 walloping at the hands of the Arizona Cardinals, completing a five-game skid in which they scored more than 13 points just once. 

In an effort to find some semblance of success down the stretch, the team showed former offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti the door and gave the controls to Rob Boras.

What a difference a week can make. 

The Rams took down the Detroit Lions last week in 21-14 fashion, snapping the skid and getting an eyebrow-raising 203 total rushing yards and two touchdowns as the offense managed seven yards per carry.

A borderline silly 140 of those yards came from Gurley, but Boras also made sure explosive wideout Tavon Austin saw plenty of touches, rushing him four times for 40 yards and letting him finish tied for the team lead in targets at five.

Defense has never truly been the problem in St. Louis. If Boras can continue to find ways to get what explosive weapons the roster touts involved, the Rams won't only play the spoiler, they'll provide a dash of hope for the future.

Prediction

A desperate team is always a dangerous one.

The Buccaneers would love to hit .500 and go into Week 16 with yet another chance to be the first edition of the team to hit above .500 since 2012.

Winston and Co. can put themselves in this position through a Martin-led ground game and strong defense. Smith's stingy defense allows just 94.1 rushing yards per game, meaning it's going to be tough sledding for Gurley and an undesirable reliance on Case Keenum, who has yet to break 200 passing yards in a game.

Look for the Buccaneers to fend off the Rams in a physical, defensive-first game.

Prediction: Buccaneers 28, Rams 21

Statistics courtesy of ESPN.com unless otherwise specified.