Buccaneers at Saints: Three Matchups to Watch

Which matchups should you watch closely this week?

It's Buccaneers-Saints week. And the game will be played in New Orleans on Halloween.

Can you ask for much more viewing pleasure than that?

Well, of course there's the game within the game to pay attention to. These games are always physical, so it's imperative that the Bucs win their matchups this week.

So, which of those matchups will be the ones to pay attention to most? 

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3. The Buccaneers receivers vs. the Saints secondary

The Saints have a really talented secondary that involves a lot of versatile players. Defensive coordinator Dennis Allen does a really good job of mixing things up on the backend. Sure, his scheme can give up some big plays from time-to-time, but it's effective as a whole and sure has given the Bucs trouble over the past couple of years. 

"Secondary-wise, a lot of guys can do different things," Tom Brady told reporters Thursday. "They can blitz, they can cover. They've got great cover players. Marcus Williams is a really good safety. So, in the end, they're really deep in the secondary, they're really deep at linebacker and they're really deep at the D-Line. That makes for a good defense."

Mike Evans' struggles against Marshon Lattimore and the Saints (outside the 2018 opener) are pretty well-documented and while one could say Chris Godwin has had more success, it's been inconsistent. 

Add in the fact that Antonio Brown and Scotty Miller will miss this game on top of not only the previous point but also the fact that rookie Paulson Adebo is playing pretty well, then it becomes clear why the Bucs receivers -especially Tyler Johnson- have to find a way to turn it on this week. 

The Bucs won't be able to rely on the run in this matchup. The Saints are too good when it comes to shutting down that aspect. The Bucs will have to make plays through the air if they want to win this game, which adds even more to this matchup.

2. QB Jameis Winston vs. the Bucs

Winston is still loved by many throughout the Bucs fan base and there will be some emotion involved when he takes the field this week and sees his former team, even if the two parties couldn't work it out in end.

“It’s always emotional," Byron Leftwich told reporters when asked about facing an ex-team as a quarterback. "When Thomas [Brady] was going back up to New England I said good thing I was a backup when I went back to Jacksonville because I was cramping up, I was emotional, and I wasn’t even playing. So, I can imagine when you’re playing how it is and it’s really emotional because all the ties that you have to a building, to a city, regardless of how it went – good or bad – that’s always emotional."

But it's not just about Winston and the Bucs. The seventh-year quarterback has been pretty good for the Saints over their first six games together. Per Pro Football Reference and Football Outsiders, Winston is 14th in QBR, 17th in DYAR, and has helped the Saints reach ninth overall in passing DVOA. His biggest contribution is that he's brought a consistent deep ball back to New Orleans' offense after Drew Brees struggled to hit those throws over the last year-and-a-half of his career.

"I think they’re doing a good job with him [Winston]," said Todd Bowles. I think he’s doing a good job of running the team."

The Bucs' main focus will -and should be- Alvin Kamara, but they have to make sure they keep Winston under wraps. Tampa Bay needs to be prepared for whichever Winston shows up. Because even bad Jameis can make plays that few other quarterbacks in this league can.

1. RB Alvin Kamara vs. the Bucs defense

Kamara is easily the best player on the Saints offense and he may even be the best player on the entire team. 

The Bucs have found a way to slow Kamara down over the past few matchups, but that doesn't mean they will take him lightly, at all, in this game.

“I don’t know if anyone matches up well with Kamara," said Bowles. "I think it’s a team effort. We slowed him down, I don’t know that we stopped him completely. He’s probably one of the best three backs in the league right now running and catching the football. It’s going to take all 11 of us to try and slow him down and win the game.”

Kamara's volume stats are what they usually are -he's third in the NFL in terms of averaging 110 yards per scrimmage per game- but the efficiency is not. Per Sports Info Solutions, he's the fourth-least efficient back among running backs with at least 61 carries and he has the third-lowest rush yards expectation per attempt mark, per Next Gen Stats. He's also 36th in DYAR, per Football Outsiders.

The Bucs can't let Kamara get going on Sunday. Let's not forget that the Bucs' usual impenetrable run defense has shown some rather large deficiencies over the last couple of weeks. Tampa Bay has to force Winston to beat them with his arm, which is why stopping Kamara -or slowing him down in Bowles' words- is the top matchup to watch this weekend.

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