Buccaneers vs. Saints score, takeaway: Tom Brady rebounds with Tampa Bay’s stunning fourth quarter

Tom Brady he’s done it again The future Hall of Fame quarterback pulled Tampa Bay from the brink of defeat to win New Orleans Saints Monday night, 17-16.

The Bucs trailed, 16-3, at the 5:31 mark of the fourth quarter when the Saints turned the ball over to the Tampa Bay offense. At that point, Brady and company drove 91 yards in 10 plays for their first touchdown of the night and to pull within six. The defense carried that momentum into the ensuing possession and forced a three-and-out on a Saints drive that lasted just 31 seconds and gave Brady the ball back with 2:29 left on the clock. As the 45-year-old has done throughout his career, he sliced ​​and diced downfield and eventually connected with the rookie. Rachel White for the touchdown that set up the game-winning extra point.

The win moves the first-place Bucs to 6-6 on the season and gives them some breathing room in the NFC South over New Orleans (4-9) and Atlanta Falcons (5-8).

Brady finished with 281 yards, two touchdowns and an interception on 36 of 54 passing. Chris Godwin was his main goal, catching eight passes for 63 yards. Andy Dalton He was 20 of 28 for 225 yards and a touchdown.

To learn more about how this game was developed, check out our sections below.

Why the Buccaneers won

In truth, the Buccaneers’ offense was a rather lackluster effort for the majority of the game. The offense seemed to follow the theme we’ve seen all year, just out of sync, as they were held to just three points in the first three quarters. However, the switch flipped in the fourth, and that’s when Brady put on a vintage performance.

Before the quarterback led the club to a 14-0 run, however, Todd Bowles made the questionable decision to return the ball to the Saints on a fourth-and-10 attempt with the team down 13 and the ball. Tampa Bay sitting on the 25-yard line with just over seven minutes to play. While it looked like Brady wanted to leave, the decision went in Bowles’ favor as the defense quickly forced a three-and-out to give the offense back the ball approximately 90 seconds later.

With the Saints giving the Bucs a chance to hang around, Brady took advantage, leading with back-to-back touchdowns as Tampa Bay’s defense continued to suffocate New Orleans. Those last two drives were flashes of Brady’s perennial brilliance, as he was 14-for-19 for 118 yards. Those were the most completions, attempts and yards in the last six minutes of the fourth quarter (including the shutout) of his career. According to the CBS Sports research team.

Why the Saints lost

New Orleans had plenty of chances to put this game away, and they just couldn’t do it. As we highlight in more detail in the “Turning Point” section below, Dennis Allen had a chance to keep the offense on the field on a fourth down attempt. Had the Saints converted, it would have helped take critical time off the clock and keep the ball out of Brady’s hands. Instead of going that way, he decided to leave the punt. There was also a critical incomplete shot in Taysom Hill’s arms that could have iced the game late.

While you can point to those late-game mistakes as the main reason the Saints are projected to go 4-9 on the year, they didn’t do them much of a favor early in the game. The defense created two turnovers against this unit, both of which yielded only field goals. What makes that even worse is that, after the turnover, every time the offense enters the red zone. After a rare Tom Brady interception in the second quarter, the Saints drove the ball to the Bucs 19-yard line before settling for a field goal before halftime. Then, after Cam Jordan punched Rachaad White in the third quarter, the offense reached the Bucs’ 3-yard line and decided to punt, even though they were already up by two points.

That lack of execution may be lost in the wild final minutes of this game, but if they had found the end zone on just one of those drives, it probably would have been too much for Brady to overcome.

Turning point

Late in the fourth quarter, the momentum really turned in Tampa Bay’s favor. After forcing a three-and-out on the Bucs offense, the Saints pulled the ball back with a 13-point lead and 6:54 on the clock. They drove the ball from midfield and to the Tampa Bay 44-yard line and faced a fourth-and-1 situation. Instead of moving the chain and trying to kill the clock, Dennis Allen chose to move the ball away. Brady and the Bucs drove 91 yards down the field for their first touchdown of the night to tie within six.

The offense against the Saints went three-and-out, which led to Dalton’s second sack to put New Orleans on third-and-17 at their own 18-yard line. Even with that long way to go, it looked like Andy Dalton would put a dagger in the Bucs’ comeback efforts as he perfectly placed a throw to tight end Taysom Hill that would have given them a first down, only to be picked off by Keanu Neal. is free to force the incomplete. That gave the ball back to Tampa Bay with 2:29 left on the clock, giving Brady plenty of time to move down the field and win.

the game

During this game, and especially during the return, there were some great plays (Julio Jones the catch on the last drive was outstanding). However, let’s highlight the touchdown that set up the game-winning extra point attempt. From the 6-yard line, Brady threw a throw to White, who ran out of the backfield and sat on the 3-yard line before snarling the ball and reaching the end zone.

White Brady’s output was reliable in this game, catching six of his eight targets for 41 yards and that touchdown. He also rushed nine times for 28 yards.

What’s next

From here, the Saints head into Week 14 and then prepare for another NFC South battle with the Atlanta Falcons in Week 15 on December 18th. As for the Bucs, they’ll be in San Francisco next week, taking the lead. The 49ers just lost quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (foot) for the season.