The Lions and Buccaneers both are 3-1 after wins in Week 4.
The NFL has flexed their Week 6 meeting to a more significant window.
The league announced Monday that the teams will kickoff at 4:25 p.m. ET in Tampa on Oct. 15. The game originally was scheduled for a 1 p.m. ET kickoff.
The move was made to supplement the national doubleheader window.
FOX will televise the Lions-Bucs game.
The other games in that FOX window are Cardinals at Rams and Eagles at Jets. The Patriots play at the Raiders at 4:05 p.m. ET on CBS.
The Bucs will wear their original creamsicle uniforms against their former NFC Central Division rival Lions. It will mark the first time Tampa Bay will wear the distinctive color scheme since 2012.
Saints running back Alvin Kamara caught 13 passes in his first action of the 2023 season, but his return from suspension did not result in a win.
The Buccaneers trampled over the Saints 26-9 and the production Kamara had on those 13 catches helped to tell the story of the loss. Kamara had just 33 yards on his receptions and his 84 overall yards from scrimmage accounted for a good percentage of the 197 yards that the Saints mustered overall.
The Saints were 25th in points scored coming into the game and Kamara said after the loss that it is time to have “tough conversations” about what’s needed to spark more production when the team has the ball.
“It’s been two years since we had that offense that was rolling. Now we’re kind of in this rut of,” Kamara said, via John Sigler of USAToday.com. “It is what it is right now. What you see. Like I said, we’ve got to have some conversations about something. Because I don’t like losing.”
Quarterback Derek Carr played despite an injury to the AC joint in his right shoulder, but he said it was no excuse for the team’s performance and head coach Dennis Allen said he didn’t think it was a factor either. Allen also said he’s “not going there” when asked about questioning the play calling of offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael, but those are exactly the kinds of tough conversations that will have to happen in New Orleans if the offense continues to sputter the way it did on Sunday.
The Buccaneers are all alone on top of the NFC South.
Baker Mayfield threw three touchdown passes and the Bucs defense stifled just about everything the Saints tried during a 26-9 win on Sunday. The victory is the Bucs’ third in four tries this season and the Saints are now 2-2.
Mayfield was 25-of-32 for 246 yards and his biggest miscue of the day didn’t come back to haunt the Bucs. Mayfield was picked off near the end zone late in the second quarter, but Antoine Winfield forced and recovered a fumble on the next play to set up a touchdown pass to Trey Palmer.
Winfield also had nine tackles, a sack, and knocked away a pass to Chris Olave in the end zone when the game was still very much in doubt. The Bucs led 17-9 after Blake Grupe’s third field goal of the game with 8:29 to play, but the Bucs went on a 10-play, 75-yard drive that end with Deven Thompkins’ first career touchdown catch.
The biggest negative of the day for the Bucs was the loss of wide receiver Mike Evans to a hamstring injury. He left late in the first half and was ruled out after testing it at the start of the third half. Chris Godwin picked up the slack with eight catches for 114 yards.
Derek Carr’s status was up in the air all week because of a right shoulder injury and he struggled against the Bucs defense. He was 23-of-37 for 127 yards and he lost a fumble on a sack by Vita Vea in the fourth quarter. The game was out of reach after the Bucs turned that into a field goal and Jameis Winston came in to throw an interception on his only pass attempt against his former team.
Running back Alvin Kamara had 11 carries for 51 yards and 13 catches for 33 yards in his first appearance of the season. Those receiving numbers indicate how hard it was for the Saints to get anything going downfield and Olave only had one catch for four yards.
The Saints had gone 11 straight games without allowing 20 points, which was one away from the longest streak in NFL history. They’ll try to start a new string in New England — Bill Belichick’s 1994-95 Browns have the only 12-game streak — while the Bucs will face the Lions at home in a matchup of 3-1 teams.
The Buccaneers appeared to blow a prime opportunity to score points late in the first half when Baker Mayfield threw an interception, but the defense gave Mayfield and company a second chance.
New Orleans got the ball on their own 1-yard-line after Isaac Yiadom’s pick and they handed the ball to fullback Adam Prentice on first down. Safety Antoine Winfield knocked the ball out of his grasp and recovered it on the 6-yard-line.
Mayfield hit wide receiver Trey Palmer in the end zone one play later and the Buccaneers went into the locker room with a 14-3 halftime lead.
Mayfield is now 18-of-23 for 143 yards and two touchdowns, so the interception doesn’t look as bad as it would have if Winfield hadn’t handed the ball back to the offense. Rachaad White has added 36 yards on eight carries to help the Bucs move the ball.
The Bucs may be without wide receiver Mike Evans the rest of the way. He is questionable to return with a hamstring injury.
The Saints drove for a field goal to open the game, but had just 52 yards and three first downs over the rest of the half. Winfield also had a sack of Derek Carr, who is playing with an AC joint injury in his right shoulder and has gone 11-of-17 for 61 yards.
More of the same in the second half will make the Bucs winners on the road.
The Buccaneers offense took some time to get going on Sunday, but their defense ensured that they remained well within reach of the Saints when they finally broke through in the second quarter.
Baker Mayfield hit tight end Cade Otton for a four-yard touchdown with 5:19 left to play in the half for the first touchdown by either team. The Bucs now lead their NFC South rivals 7-3.
Mayfield completed passes to six different receivers on the scoring drive and is now 13-of-17 for 99 yards on the afternoon. One of his completions was to wide receiver Chris Godwin, who also threw a pass to wide receiver Trey Palmer for a six-yard gain during the possession.
The Saints have picked up 82 yards so far in the half and will need to get about that many to put themselves back in the lead before halftime. They may not have tight end Juwan Johnson’s help as he’s questionable to return with a calf injury. The Buccaneers have lost defensive back Ryan Neal to a concussion.