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NFL Week 17 Early Odds, Picks & Predictions (2023)

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With just two weeks remaining, every game means a little more for teams in the playoff hunt.

We’ve got some big matchups in Week 17 that will help figure out many NFL playoff spots. Therefore, I’ve added a couple of best bets for some of the teams looking to keep playing in three weeks.

Early NFL Week 17 Best Bets

All wagers are 1 unit | Odds courtesy of BetMGM

New Orleans Saints @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are on a four-game winning streak. The winning streak has put the Buccaneers on pace to win the NFC South.

Tampa Bay is 8-7, while the Falcons and Saints are sitting at 7-8. Therefore, this is a massive game for the Buccaneers at home against the Saints.

The Buccaneers have added at least 21 points in each win. However, they’ve scored at least 29 points in each of their last three games. The offense is shining behind Bakey Mayfield, who has made Mike Evans a top-five receiver in the NFL this season.

Meanwhile, the Saints watched their two-game winning streak snap against the Rams on Thursday. New Orleans will have more time to prepare and recover. However, New Orleans’ defense just allowed 30 points to the Rams in a 30-22 loss. The Saints are typically an outstanding defense, but it was a struggle against Los Angeles.

Let’s take the Buccaneers at -2.5.

Bet: Buccaneers -3.0 (-110)

Pittsburgh Steelers @ Seattle Seahawks

There will be a lot of controversy around the quarterback position for the Steelers this week. Mason Rudolph helped Pittsburgh score 34 points in a 34-11 win over the Bengals in Week 16. In his first start in a long time, Rudolph threw for 290 yards and two touchdowns. He was also sacked only once and helped the Steelers to 397 yards of offense.

The Bengals aren’t a good defense, but not even Kenny Pickett or Mitch Trubisky could do what Rudolph just did.

But here’s the catch. Pickett could be healthy enough to return for the Steelers this weekend. While it’s true that the Steelers will likely consider playing Pickett over Rudolph if he’s healthy, I will be optimistic. I didn’t think Rudolph had the most insane game. I think he just played within the offense and didn’t turn the ball over. Pickett, on the sideline, likely learned some and is eager to return to the field to showcase it all.

Seattle has played in many high-scoring games, including a 41-35 game against Dallas and a couple of big games against San Francisco. The defense has performed better against the Eagles and Titans, but both offenses have struggled independently with self-inflicted wounds.

I think we’ll see points in this matchup. Give me the Over.

Bet: Over 41.5 (-110)

Make sure to check out our other best bets for Tuesday:

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