The teams then squared off in the Superdome during the postseason—one of the “toughest places for teams to play,” according to all those NFL pundits and experts—and the Saints did what the Saints do every year in the playoffs. New Orleans choked.
The Saints lost on a Devin White interception of now-retired quarterback Drew Brees. I guess Brees was just so preoccupied with thinking about how disrespectful all that Anthem protesting was to his veteran grandfather.
And now the Saints have former Bucs QB and first-overall pick Jameis Winston.
You may remember Winston for his perfectly imperfect 30-30 season, one that saw him throw 33 touchdowns and 30 interceptions while leading the league in passing yards.
But none of that matters for Sunday’s game. Sunday’s game is about Tom Brady righting more wrongs. Last week—following last season’s embarrassing loss on the road to the then-Nick-Foles-led Bears—he had to remind Chicago who their father was by dropping 35 in the first half on their heads.
So this week the old GOAT is going to continue his “revenge” tour (for a guy coming off winning his 7th Super Bowl ring, he doesn’t really need to prove anything, but oh well) by dominating the Saints 31-13.
Jameis is still throwing to a patchwork receiving corps, with star receiver Michael Thomas not back yet and no other real firepower to speak of in that department.
Alvin Kamara is one of the most deadly pass catchers out of the backfield we’ve ever seen, constantly setting new records for yards from scrimmage, and with Lavonte David’s status still up in the air for Sunday, the Bucs might have some trouble containing the former Tennessee Volunteer.
But no matter. The Saints lost to the Giants earlier this season. They lost to the Panthers, too. New Orleans is simply not as good as its 4-2 record shows, no matter what Brady says in his press conferences.
The good news for the Bucs, regardless of how Sunday’s game goes, is that reinforcements are starting to arrive. Gronk is expected to play Sunday for the first time since suffering a rib injury in the Bucs’ loss to the Rams in Week 3. Richard Sherman and the aforementioned David might not suit up Sunday, but they’ve both been limited participants in practice this week. And the Bucs have a bye following Sunday’s matchup.
So even if the Bucs continue their rotten luck against these pesky Saints and lose on the road Sunday, there’s still a silver lining. They’re getting healthy, and they’ve already got 7 wins going into their bye.
Not a bad start.
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This article appears in Oct 28 – Nov 3, 2021.