Game Balls from the Saints 38-3 Demolition of the Buccaneers

New Orleans turns a Prime-time showdown between two title contenders into a rout as they seize control of the NFC South.

The New Orleans Saints took sole possession of first place in the NFC South by marching into Tampa Bay and dismantling the Buccaneers in front of a prime-time audience by a score of 38-3. New Orleans set the tone for the night on the game's first play when DE Cam Jordan pressured Tampa Bay QB Tom Brady into an incompletion and set up a three-and-out on the opening possession. 

The Saints offense then took their first possession on a 65-Yd march for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead. A national audience didn't know it at the time, but that was the end of this contest's competitive portion.

Nov 8, 2020; Tampa, Florida, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Taysom Hill (7) runs with the ball against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the first half at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports / Nov 8, 2020; Tampa, Florida, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Taysom Hill (7) runs with the ball against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the first half at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

A highly ranked Tampa Bay defense was no match for a multi-faceted New Orleans offense with its full set of weapons back with the return of receivers Michael Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders. The Saints rolled to 284 yards and 18 first downs in the opening half alone while pounding their way to a 31-0 lead at the break. 

They cruised to 420 total yards and 27 1st downs in the game, converting 9 of 14 3rd down opportunities, and had their way with the Buccaneer defense in both the passing game and running attack. The Buccaneers held RB Alvin Kamara to his lowest yardage total of the year (49 yards) and contained Michael Thomas and Jared Cook, but the team's complementary weapons came up big. 

Taysom Hill had his biggest outing of the season, picking up 54 yards rushing, catching a pass for 21 yards, and completing two throws for 48 yards.

Nov 8, 2020; Tampa, Florida, USA;Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady (12) throws the ball against the New Orleans Saints during the first half at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY  / © Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Defensively, an often criticized New Orleans secondary clamped down on a dangerous and deep group of Tampa pass catchers. They squashed the Buccaneers running attack, allowing a measly 8 yards on five attempts. 

Their pass rush harassed and battered Brady all evening, making the future Hall of Famer look uncomfortable and hurried in his decisions. The Saints held the Buccaneers without a first down until their sixth possession of the contest. 

They forced two turnovers, four three-and-outs, stood strong on a goal-line stand, and held the Bucs to just 105 1st half yards to essentially end this contest by halftime. For the game, the Saints had 3 sacks, forced 3 turnovers, and held the Buccaneers to a paltry 194 total yards and 1 of 9 on 3rd down attempts.

A collective ‘‘Game Ball'' is well-deserved to a New Orleans team that dominated Tampa Bay in all three phases. But here were the biggest performers from this resounding victory.

DAVID ONYEMATA, DEFENSIVE TACKLE

Nov 8, 2020; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady (12) throws a pass against the New Orleans Saints in the first quarter of a NFL game at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY 

New Orleans brought heavy pressure on Brady all evening with their defensive line and timely blitzes from LB Demario Davis. Defensive ends Cam Jordan and Marcus Davenport had several hurries in the first half, and DE Trey Hendrickson had a spectacular sequence in the 3rd quarter when he sacked Brady on three consecutive plays, although a questionable penalty disallowed one. Fifth-year DT Onyemata led the inside charge on the Tampa backfield, collapsing the pocket in Brady's face most of the game.

Onyemata had the first of his defense's three interceptions, grabbing a pass tipped by Davenport in the second quarter to set up the fourth New Orleans touchdown. He did not record a sack but had several pressures that forced Brady into his teammates' awaiting arms. Onyemata led the Saints with 4 QB hits on Brady and was one of the biggest factors on a defensive front that destroyed Tampa Bay's pass protection.

RYAN RAMCZYK, RIGHT TACKLE

Nov 8, 2020; Tampa, Florida, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) under center against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first quarter of a NFL game at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

While Brady was under constant duress, Drew Brees enjoyed phenomenal protection from his offensive line. The interior efforts of Erik McCoy, Andrus Peat, Nick Easton, and Cesar Ruiz kept DT Ndamukong Suh at bay, while left tackle Terron Armstead stifled edge rusher Jason Pierre-Paul. 

New Orleans threw several double-team combinations at Suh and Pierre-Paul, but would leave their All-Pro right tackle in one-on-one assignments often against All-Pro Shaquil Barrett.

Barrett had his team's only sack of Brees, but that was on a missed assignment switch by TE Jared Cook. When matched up against Ramczyk, he was a non-factor. Ramczyk keyed a dominant performance up front by the Saints, who allowed Brees to get hit just twice and plowed through the top-ranked Tampa Bay run defense for 138 rushing yards.

MARSHON LATTIMORE, CORNERBACK

Nov 8, 2020; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers receiver Antonio Brown (81) and New Orleans Saints cornerback Janoris Jenkins (20) look up for a pass in the first quarter of a NFL game at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY 

The much-maligned New Orleans secondary had their best outing of the 2020 season. Free safety Marcus Williams intercepted a Brady pass to end a Tampa drive in the second quarter. He showed outstanding recognition to take away any deep options for the Buccaneers offense. 

Strong safety Malcolm Jenkins, who had a 3rd quarter interception, had outstanding coverage on TE Rob Gronkowski and helped limit him to just one catch for 2 yards. Cornerback Janoris Jenkins had an impressive outing against Tampa wideouts Antonio Brown and Chris Godwin, allowing few receptions of any consequence in his coverage assignments. 

The most impressive performance came from Marshon Lattimore, who has turned his matchups against the Buccaneers into a personal crusade.

Tampa Bay WR Mike Evans caught 4 passes for 64 yards. All but one were against softer zone coverage once the game's outcome was decided and he didn't have a single reception against Lattimore, his personal tormentor. Lattimore was matched up against Evans on 18 snaps during the game. 

Brady targeted Evans on two of those 18 snaps, but didn't complete either attempt. It was the third consecutive game that Lattimore held Evans without a reception against his coverage, once again reducing the Pro Bowl receiver into nothing more than a spectator.

DREW BREES, QUARTERBACK

Nov 8, 2020; Tampa, Florida, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9) throws the ball against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the first half at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Tampa Bay geared their defensive game plan for stopping Kamara and Thomas and were relatively successful, holding the two to a combined 100 yards. That proved to be no problem for Brees, who tore apart the Tampa defense with surgical precision. 

Despite windy and rainy conditions, Brees completed 8 of his 9 attempts of over ten yards, for 137 yards and three scores. He was on another level in the first half, completing 18 of 23 throws for 189 yards and 3 touchdowns on his way to 26 of 34 for 222 yards and 4 touchdowns in the game.

On a night when his two best weapons were contained, Brees completed passes to 11 different receivers, giving notice to the rest of the NFL that this is still a passing attack that will beat a defense in multiple ways. His four scoring tosses moved him ahead of Brady as the league's all-time touchdown passes leader with 564.

The New Orleans victory gave them a critical season sweep of their NFC South rival and placed them in control of the division at the midway point of the season. 

It was also a statement to the rest of the league, a convincing victory over a mid-season Super Bowl favorite that showed that the Saints are a formidable force that should also be considered a title favorite.