Buccaneers at Chiefs
At least one lengthy streak will come to an end when the surging Kansas City Chiefs host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday. The Buccaneers have won four straight meetings with the Chiefs dating to the 1993 season opener, but extending that streak would require winning at Arrowhead Stadium - where the hosts have captured 10 straight.
Kansas City has won five in a row overall after staging a remarkable comeback from a 17-point deficit for a 20-17 victory at Carolina last week. The win moved the Chiefs into a tie for the AFC’s best record along with New England and Oakland, and gave them their fourth win this season by a touchdown or less. "The more you play in those types of games, and it gets down to crunch time, there's never a panic," Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith told reporters. "We just go about our business. When we get into a fourth quarter, we've been there before, so we can rely on fundamentals and what we've been coached to do." Tampa Bay snapped a two-game skid with a 36-10 rout of Chicago last week and remained well within the NFC playoff picture.
TV: 1 p.m. ET, FOX. LINE: Chiefs -7.5. O/U: 44.5
ABOUT THE BUCCANEERS (4-5): Tampa Bay scored a season-high 36 points against the Bears thanks to four takeaways – a common theme in the team’s success. The Buccaneers have forced 11 turnovers in their four wins and just four in their five defeats. The running game has been practically non-existent in the last two games, and quarterback Jameis Winston could use some help on the ground against a tough pass rush and secondary.
ABOUT THE CHIEFS (7-2): The Chiefs’ offense has foundered over the last two weeks, but the defense has made up for it by continuing to force turnovers as an impressive rate. Kansas City leads the league with 22 takeaways, including at least two in each of its five straight wins. Smith rarely puts up flashy numbers, but he continues to get the job done as he has recorded eight touchdown passes against three interceptions, while Spencer Ware has been effective both running the ball and catching it out of the backfield.
EXTRA POINTS
1. Kansas City LB Dee Ford has recorded nine sacks in his last six games and is tied for the NFL lead with 10 on the season.
2. Tampa Bay WR Mike Evans is tied for the league lead with eight touchdown receptions and has caught at least one scoring pass in four straight road games.
3. Chiefs CB Marcus Peters is tied for first in the NFL with five interceptions and has registered 13 in 25 career games.