ESPN, NBC and NFL Network’s Panels All Unanimously Picked the Buccaneers Over the Saints

In Monday’s Hot Clicks: the Saints get disrespected by the so-called experts, some goal line trickery from the Chiefs and more.

Don’t count out Drew Brees

On paper, Sunday night’s Saints-Bucs game should have been a close one. New Orleans entered at 5–2, while Tampa Bay was 6–2. The Vegas oddsmakers had the Bucs as a three-point favorite, standard for a home team in an even matchup. 

The nation’s football “experts” didn’t see it that way. Every single panelist on ESPN, NFL Network and NBC’s pregame shows picked Tom Brady and the Bucs to win. 

Not only were they all wrong, it was obvious by halftime how wrong they were. Tom Brady played like crap (22-of-38 passing for 209 yards and three interceptions) and the Bucs got blown out of the water, 38–3. It would have been a shutout if the Bucs, after an intentional grounding penalty on Brady and a sack, hadn’t kicked a 48-yard field goal on fourth-and-20 with six minutes to play. 

How could not one of the 15 experts have picked the Saints? New Orleans already won against the Bucs earlier this season, and Tampa Bay had just had a very close call against the lousy Giants on Monday Night Football. The Saints are hardly a juggernaut—they’d won their previous three games by a total of nine points, with two of those victories coming in overtime—but they’ve still got a dangerous offense. 

The Saints are hardly the first team to get disrespected by a studio full of analysts, but it has to be exceptionally rare for three full panels of pundits to screw up that badly. It’s become popular this season for teams to call out pregame show panelists when their picks are proved wrong. 

After the game, the Saints posted a video of the ESPN, NFL Network and NBC crews making their picks, set to the Curb Your Enthusiasm theme, of course. 

Jason Kirk of Moon Crew has an easy solution to help pregame panels avoid getting memed in the future: Just make sure one guy goes against the grain. No one can get mad at the whole group if it looks like one person always had faith in the underdog. 

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The Chiefs always get shifty around the goal line

It’s a team sport but Tom Brady STUNK

YOU SHALL NOT PASS 🧙‍♂️#Saints | 📱: https://t.co/i8R5PLY4WQ pic.twitter.com/C8bxnZQBfZ

— New Orleans Saints (@Saints) November 9, 2020

Tom Brady's worst losses, by point differential

2005 vs. Chargers (17-41)
2000 vs. Lions (9-34)
2014 vs. Chiefs (14-41)
2003 vs. Bills (0-31)
2020 vs. Saints (3-38) pic.twitter.com/7MOPM784Xx

— SB Nation (@SBNation) November 9, 2020

Jameis brought back his corny “eat a W” celebration

Saints players call Drew Brees the “real goat” and then Jamie’s Winson starts eating Ws again https://t.co/Sz39Ukb4KL

— Gifdsports (@gifdsports) November 9, 2020

This was ruled a pick?

JUICEMAN

Tune in on CBS! pic.twitter.com/nHQah4A0be

— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) November 8, 2020

Mahomes can make a throw from any arm angle

We're just used to stuff like this now. That's how good he is. pic.twitter.com/mDu86rEGdn

— Robert Mays (@robertmays) November 9, 2020

This play is amazing when it works out

The Cowboys are wildin' today 😳

(via @thecheckdown)pic.twitter.com/IpEhN0LXtV

— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) November 8, 2020

That DB got played

Nobody can catch Kyler Murray

Was the ball covered in butter?

Every NFC stat is pure gore

Icing the kicker never works!

The Chargers were so close

That’s a lot of people

Notre Dame fans stormed the field after taking down No. 1 Clemson pic.twitter.com/4eyhD0qb8k

— SI College Football (@si_ncaafb) November 8, 2020

Hell of throw

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The reporter’s reaction is amazing

That can’t be good for the engine

Britain is something else

He was one of a kind

A good song

Email dan.gartland@si.com with any feedback or follow me on Twitter for approximately one half-decent baseball joke per week. Bookmark this page to see previous editions of Hot Clicks and find the newest edition every day. By popular request I’ve made a Spotify playlist of the music featured here. Visit our Extra Mustard page throughout each day for more offbeat sports stories.