First Touchdown Scorer Prop Bets for Buccaneers vs. Bears on Sunday Night Football

Look, there’s part of me that wants to call this game an NFC playoff preview, but that doesn’t mean I feel especially good about it. I think we can all agree that the Bears are doing their part and are performing like a squad that could win the Super Bowl; yet inferring that any NFC South team is a lock to make the postseason is usually a mistake.

With that said, the Buccaneers have won two huge divisional tilts in the past two weeks to essentially keep their season alive, and at 3-5, they’re just a half-game back of the Panthers in the standings. What a division.

Let’s break down the first touchdown scorer odds for this Sunday Night Football clash and make a couple picks along the way.

Buccaneers vs. Bears First Touchdown Scorer Odds

Buccaneers vs. Bears First Touchdown Scorer Picks

Bucky Irving First TD Scorer (+650)

I’m a little surprised Irving’s odds are quite this long given the fact that the Buccaneers don’t need to complete passes to win football games. I joke, I joke. But, in all seriousness, for the season as a whole, Tampa ranks first in the NFL in rushing rate (53.5%), while Irving sits top five in rushing attempts (147). That’s a lot of implied volume for the veteran back — even if tonight’s Buccaneers contest doesn’t take place in a tsunami like in Week 8. If that wasn’t enough excess, consider that Irving simultaneously leads Tampa Bay in red zone targets (6) and garners 60.5% of the squad’s red zone carries. Now, some of that has to do with prolonged absences to Emeka Egbuka (+1400) and Baker Mayfield (+3500), yet it still speaks to how large a role Irving plays in this offense.

Colston Loveland First TD Scorer (+900)

This is the Bears’ third straight primetime tilt and I think I’ve picked Loveland to score the game’s first touchdown in all three. I have to be correct at some point, right? The reason I keep going back to the Loveland well is simple. Aside from the benefit of the former 10th-overall pick’s large frame and wingspan in and around the red zone, Loveland’s just been utilized like a No. 1 receiving option since the return of Caleb Williams (+1700) in Week 6. It’s a three-game span where Loveland leads the Bears in targets (26), red zone targets (5), receptions (20), and he’s tied for the team lead in receiving touchdowns (2) with Luther Burden III (+900). This is the version of Loveland that had prospective fantasy owners so excited in August.