The Buccaneers are missing several key offensive pieces due to injuries, so they leaned on their defense in New Orleans on Sunday.
Anthony Nelson returned an interception for a touchdown in the first half and the Bucs forced four total turnovers en route to a 23-3 win. The victory sends them into their bye week with a 6-2 record and they’ll be hoping to get players like wide receiver Chris Godwin and running back Bucky Irving back for the start of the second half of the season.
Nelson forced a Spencer Rattler fumble in the first quarter before picking him off on the New Orleans four-yard line and strolling into the end zone. The Bucs thought they had another defensive touchdown when safety Antoine Winfield Jr. returned a fumble for a touchdown, but an inadvertent whistle took the score off the board.
The 1-7 Saints pulled Rattler in favor of rookie Tyler Shough in the third quarter and Winfield picked him off for the final takeaway of the game. Shough was 17-of-30 for 128 yards and Saints head coach Kellen Moore will be fielding questions about which quarterback will get the start against the Rams in Los Angeles in Week 9.
Nelson added two sacks to the forced turnovers and the Bucs had five in total over the course of the win. Their offense chipped in with a Sean Tucker touchdown run and three field goals, but they spent most of the day doing just enough to make sure that the defense’s strong work would stand up.
Tucker’s touchdown came on a fourth down from the Saints’ 1-yard line after the Bucs had failed to score from that spot on the first three downs. They also got stopped without points on four plays from the 1 in the first half, but Nelson’s interception came right after that turnover on downs and the Bucs’ win was never in serious doubt from that point forward.
The Saints made a quarterback change in the third quarter of Sunday’s home game against the Buccaneers.
Rookie Tyler Shough replaced Spencer Rattler around the four-minute mark with the Saints down 17-3. Rattler is on the sideline with a baseball cap and there’s been no injury announced, so it appears Saints head coach Kellen Moore has made the decision to try to spark his offense.
Rattler was 15-of-21 for 136 yards, but had an interception returned for a touchdown and lost a fumble in the first half of the game.
Shough was a second-round pick earlier this year and threw two passes in mopup duty during a loss to the Seahawks.
The Buccaneers defense scored one touchdown and it looked like they had another just before halftime, but an errant whistle wound up costing them six points.
Cornerback Jamel Dean stripped Saints wideout Rashid Shaheed of the ball and safety Antoine Winfield returned the ball for a touchdown that would have put the Bucs up 13-0. Officials ruled that an inadvertant whistle blew during the play, however, and the Bucs had to settle for taking over near midfield.
That reversal wound up looming large because Baker Mayfield lost the ball on a Chase Young sack a few plays later and the Saints were able to drive for a field goal that made it 7-3 before halftime.
Mayfield has been sacked three times and the Bucs offense was also stopped short on four straight snaps from the Saints’ 1-yard line in the first quarter. Edge rusher Anthony Nelson returned a Spencer Rattler interception for a touchdown a couple of plays after their unsuccessful fourth down try, so pinning the Saints deep wound up working.
Nelson also forced Rattler to fumble early in the game and the defense’s efforts have made the sluggish offense easier to bear for the Bucs through 30 minutes.
The Buccaneers offense couldn’t score on four plays from the Saints’ 1-yard line, but the defense made up for it.
Edge rusher Anthony Nelson batted a Spencer Rattler pass into the air and then picked it off for a four-yard touchdown return. The extra point made it 7-0 Bucs with 6:41 to play in the first hal.
Nelson also forced a Rattler fumble on a scramble and he sacked the Saints quarterback, so it’s been a busy day already for the veteran.
The Bucs drove 91 yards on their last offensive possession, but neither Rachaad White nor Sean Tucker could break through the Saints’ line for a touchdown. Nelson’s play eased the pain of that failure and the Bucs will try for better results once they get the ball back.
Defensive tackle Vita Vea missed the last two days of practice this week, but the Buccaneers will have him in the lineup against the Saints on Sunday.
Vea is active despite the foot injury that kept him off the field on Thursday and Friday. Vea has started every game this season and has 17 tackles, 2.5 sacks and a fumble recovery on the year.
The Bucs will not have wide receiver Chris Godwin, running back Bucky Irving, guard Luke Haggard, defensive lineman C.J. Brewer, safety Sebastian Castro, cornerback Kindle Vildor, and edge rusher Haason Reddick.
Quarterback Connor Bazelak is active along with Baker Mayfield and Teddy Bridgewater. It is the first time the rookie has been active this season.
Guard Xavier Truss, tight end Zaire Mitchell-Paden, defensive back Ugo Amadi, cornerback Rejzohn Wright, defensive lineman Jonah Williams, and defensive lineman Khristian Boyd are inactive for the Saints.
