The Indianapolis Colts come in to Tampa Bay as a team with as many if not more uncertainties as the Buccaneers have. So what version of the Colts will the Bucs face in Week 14?

Here are this week’s staff predictions for Week 14 between the Bucs and the Colts.

Gil Arcia (7-5)

Score Prediction: Bucs 27, Colts 23

Why: Jameis Winston and the Buccaneers offense will be playing against a 13th ranked Colts defense. However, the big matchup to watch is how the Bucs will handle the Indy offense. Why? Their running game has been Top 5 but their passing offense has been bad at best. The Bucs have seen an improvement in the secondary and still remain tops in the league against the run. However, many from SB Nation, to CBS, to even Vegas feel Jacoby Brissett will be a must-start this week. I don’t think that’ll be the case this week, but the game will be close.

James Yarcho (4-8)

Score Prediction: Bucs 30, Colts 16

Why: This game lends its advantage to the Buccaneers in every category - which is scary because those are the games they normally lose. Jacoby Brissett has been a shell of his early season self, leading Colts fans to clamor for a new quarterback in 2020. Things won't get any easier for him against a vastly improving Bucs pass rush and secondary. Bucs take this one easily.

Evan Winter (8-4)

Score Prediction: Colts 24, Bucs 17

Why: It’s easy. The Colts are still considered to be a good team, while the Bucs are still figuring out how to be a good team.

I think the Colts’ 1-4 record over the last five games is overblown. Three of the four teams they lost to (Pittsburgh, Houston, Tennessee) are a combined 22-14. The Colts also didn’t have Jacoby Brissett for the majority of the Pittsburgh game or the entire Dolphins game, and they still lost those two games by a combined six points.

The Colts are well-coached, tough in the trenches, and they don’t make a lot of mistakes. The Bucs going to have to play a full four quarters if they want to win this game and the coaching staff is going to have to be on point.

I’m not sure if the Bucs are ready to do that against a good team just yet. They did beat one team with a .500 record or better, but it was against a Rams team that would struggle for the next few weeks. On the flip side, Tampa Bay’s past three wins have come against the Cardinals, Falcons, and Jaguars, who are a combined 10-25-1.

We’ve now seen Tampa Bay play well two weeks in a row, but can they do it against a good opponent?

Sure they can. But I need to see it first.

Bailey Adams (6-6)

Score Prediction: Bucs 31, Colts 23

Why: The Bucs and Colts seem to be two teams headed in different directions right now, at least as far as 2019 is concerned. Tampa Bay is rolling, while Indianapolis is banged up and spiraling. Earlier in the season, that would’ve seemed like a recipe for a Buccaneer loss... somehow. But I think this team has grown considerably and has learned some valuable lessons. The defense is on fire right now and the offense has continued to put up the points needed to win. This won’t be easy, that’s for sure. The Colts are better than the Falcons and Jaguars. But I think Jameis Winston and the offense do enough in this game and the Devin White-led defense forces a couple of turnovers to make the difference and get the Bucs their third straight win.

Kyle Marks (4-8)

Score Prediction: Bucs 38, Colts 24

Why: The Tampa Bay offense has been able to put up some serious points at time this season and with that said, it’s time they crank it up again. The last two weeks haven’t been clean games by the offense, this week I expect them to explode against a solid Colts defense. On the other side of things, the defense seems to have found itself over the last few games and I expect that growth to continue. Bucs take this one and get themselves on a true winning streak.

David Harrison (5-7)

Score Prediction: Bucs 27, Colts 20

Why: Coming into this weekend I’ve used some creative math equations to get my score predictions. And in both weekends, the Buccaneers came away with the win. Of course, the Bucs also haven’t lost since I started watching and reviewing Star Wars movies on episodes of the Locked On Bucs Podcast either. So, we’ll keep doing both to try and keep some of this mojo going. If the force can propel young Anakin to being a hero in Episode 1, then this mojo can propel Tampa Bay to a third win in a row. For this week’s math, the Indianapolis Colts are averaging 19.75 points per game over the last quarter of the season. When they’ve lost - which is three times in the last four games - they’ve done so by an average of one touchdown plus the extra point. Rounding their score up to an even 20, this means Jameis Winston, Vita Vea and the Buccaneers offense will put up 27 to get their second home win of the year. Shout out to middle school me who said I’d never use averages and decimals in real life.

Week 13’s Community Poll Results

Poll Week 13 Fan Vote: Bucs or Jags? This poll is closed. 83% Bucs (203 votes)

16% Jags (41 votes) 244 votes total Vote Now

Week 14 Community Poll