Week 8 in the NFL features an NFC South battle between the first-place Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-2) and the last place New Orleans Saints (1-6).
Tampa Bay is looking to bounce back after a rough outing in Motown. The Bucs lost Mike Evans to a broken collarbone and suffered their second loss of the season, 24-9. In previous weeks, Baker Mayfield was able to work wonders behind a banged up offensive line and skeleton wide receiver corps, but those deficiencies caught up with the Bucs Monday night in the loss to the Lions.
Although they have won but one time in 2025, the Saints have been competitive in most of their games. This past Sunday was not one of those games, however, as they fell behind the Bears, 20-0, before ultimately losing 26-14. Spencer Rattler has been serviceable and maybe better than anticipated, but has he been good enough to not draft a quarterback in 2026? At 1-6 this season, it is without question not too early to be thinking that way.
Expect the Bucs’ defensive line to control the game and force Rattler and co. into mistakes. While Mayfield’s offensive line and receivers are still banged up, they collectively should be able to do enough consistently on the afternoon to win comfortably and in the process maintain control of the NFC South.
Lets take a deeper dive into this Week 8 matchup between the Buccaneers and the Saints.
NBC Sports has all the latest info and analysis you need, including how to tune in for kickoff, odds from DraftKings, player news and updates, and of course our predictions and best bets for the game from our staff of experts.
Game Details and How to watch the Buccaneers at the Saints live Sunday
- Date: Sunday, October 26, 2025
- Time: 4:05PM EST
- Site: Caesars Superdome
- City: New Orleans, LA
- Network/Streaming: FOX
Want to check out the other games on the NFL schedule this week? We’ve got you covered right here on NBC Sports with all the matchup, venue, game-time and TV/streaming info so you won’t miss any of the action!
Game odds for the Buccaneers at the Saints
The latest odds as of Tuesday courtesy of DraftKings:
- Moneyline: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-238), New Orleans Saints (+195)
- Spread: Buccaneers -5.5
- Total: 46.5 points
This game opened at Buccaneers -5.5 with the Game Total set at 47.0.
Be sure to check out DraftKings for all the latest game odds & player props for every matchup this week on the NFL schedule!
Quarterback Matchup for Tampa Bay at New Orleans
- Buccaneers Starting QB: Baker Mayfield
Last Game: 10/20 at Detroit - 28-50, 228yds, 1 TD, 1 INT, Sacked 4 times
Season: 7GP, 157-245, 1,767yds, 13TDs, 2 INTs, Sacked 14 times, 22 carries for 158yds rushing - Saints Starting QB: Spencer Rattler
Last Game: 10/19 at Chicago - 20-32, 233yds, 2 TDs, 3 INTs, Sacked 4 times, 2 carries for 12yds rushing
Season: 7GP, 159-235, 1,450yds, 8 TDs, 4 INTs, Sacked 15 times, 28 carries for 155yds rushing
Buccaneers at Saints team stats, betting trends
- The Buccaneers have won their last 7 games against teams with worse records
- The Saints are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games as a home underdog
- The Under has cashed in 4 of the Saints’ 7 games
- New Orleans is 2-5 ATS this season
- Tampa Bay is 4-3 ATS this season
- The Over has cashed in 4 of the Bucs’ 7 games
Buccaneers Player Injuries
- WR Mike Evans (concussion/collarbone) has been declared OUT for Sunday’s game
- OT Luke Haggard (shoulder) is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game
- WR Chris Godwin, Jr. (leg) is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game
- RB Bucky Irving (foot) is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game
- RB Josh Williams (concussion) is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game
- LB Haason Reddick (knee/ankle) is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game
Saints Player Injuries
- RB Kendre Miller (knee) has been declared OUT for Sunday’s game
- C Erik McCoy (biceps) has been declared OUT for Sunday’s game
- CB Isaac Yiadom (hamstring) is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game
- DT John Ridgeway III (shoulder) is eligible to come off the IR and is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game
Rotoworld Best Bets
Please bet responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline at 1-800-522-4700.
Drew Dinsick (@whale_capper): Tampa Bay Buccaneers -5½ (+102)
Bucs bounce back on the strength of Bowles’ defense against the very underwhelming Spencer Rattler. WRs injuries in Tampa keeping this number betable.
Trysta Krick (@Trysta_Krick): Tampa Bay 1H -2.5
Tampa Bay looked as flat as they have all season in that loss to Detroit, and things went from bad to worse when Mike Evans was carted off — early reports suggest it could be a serious injury. Now the Bucs hit the road for a divisional matchup in New Orleans as 4.5-point favorites.
Here’s what’s fascinating: outside of their win over the 49ers, every Bucs victory this season has been by a field goal or less. They’re living dangerously close to the margin each week.
The Saints, meanwhile, have been more competent than expected offensively, but their defense is a problem — allowing nearly 27 points per game and constantly digging early holes. They’re 2–5 ATS in first halves, which makes Tampa Bay -2.5 in the first half my best bet for the game.
***
Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the NFL calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, stadium information and weather forecasts.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
Best bets our model is projecting for this week’s game between the Buccaneers and the Saints:
- Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play on the New Orleans Saints on the Moneyline.
- Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the New Orleans Saints at +5.5.
- Total: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the under on the Game Total of 47.0.
Rotoworld has you covered with all the latest betting info & tools for NFL with player news, game predictions, player props, futures, and trends!
Follow our experts on socials to keep up with all the latest content from the staff:
● Jay Croucher (@croucherJD)
● Drew Dinsick (@whale_capper)
● Vaughn Dalzell (@VmoneySports)
● Trysta Krick (@Trista_Krick)
