Tennessee Titans vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers Betting Odds, Analysis, NFL Pick

Two teams that combined for four wins a year ago to earn the top two picks in the NFL draft will kick off the season in Tampa Bay Sunday when the Buccaneers host the Tennessee Titans, who have failed to cover the spread in their last six games.

The Titans ride a 10-game losing streak into Tampa overall and dropped 14 of 15 following a surprising season-opening road win over the Kansas City Chiefs last year.

Point spread: The Buccaneers opened as 2.5-point favorites; the total was 42.5 early in the week, according to sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark. (Line updates and matchup report)

NFL pick, via Odds Shark computer: 23.0-20.8 Buccaneers

Why the Titans can cover the spread

Tennessee has won six of the past seven meetings with the Bucs, and another victory here would obviously translate to a cover as an underdog. The Titans were abysmal last year, though, and will need to forget everything that happened after the season opener in order to bounce back in 2015.

Tennessee head coach Ken Whisenhunt has been hailed as an offensive genius multiple times during his career, but his team looked downright awful in his first year there. However, Whisenhunt will have a new quarterback to groom in 2014 Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota, who was selected by the Titans with the second overall pick.

Mariota flashed a lot of potential with his arm and his legs when he played at Oregon, and he is hoping to become the face of the franchise.

Why the Buccaneers can cover the spread

Like Tennessee, Tampa Bay will have a heralded rookie quarterback under center in 2013 Heisman winner Jameis Winston, out of nearby Florida State. Winston was picked No. 1 overall ahead of Mariota and squared off against him in the 2014 College Football Playoff semifinals.

Some thought Winston played better than his counterpart despite losing the game, and he definitely has a better set of receivers in the pros with veteran Vincent Jackson and second-year player Mike Evans.

The Bucs were fairly respectable versus the number last year with a 7-9 ATS mark, mainly because their offense kept them in games. That was accomplished with Josh McCown and Mike Glennon at quarterback, and Winston should be able to perform better than both of them.

Smart pick

The media will be building this up as a battle of the top two picks in the NFL draft, but Mariota simply does not have the same level of talent around him to make this a competitive game. Not that Tampa will compete for the NFC South title in Winston’s rookie year, but there is a buzz around him that led many talent scouts to grade him as the best college player available.

The Bucs should probably be bigger favorites in this spot, as they should be able to top the Titans by at least a touchdown at home.

Betting trends

The Titans are 0-10 SU in their last 10 games.

The total has gone under in the Titans' last eight games against the NFC South.

The Buccaneers are 0-5 SU and ATS in their last five games as favorites in September.

All point spread and lines data courtesy of Odds Shark, all quotes gathered firsthand unless otherwise noted. Check out Twitter for injury and line movement updates and get the free odds tracker app.