Buccaneers @ Saints
Final Score: Saints 36, Buccaneers 27
Writer: Justin Herrera (@Semtexmex93 on Twitter)
Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers rolled into the “Big Easy” looking for a big win in the NFC South. The key injuries in this game were Antonio Brown and Michael Thomas. The Saints and Bucs came into this game on win streaks looking to establish themselves as the dominant force in the NFC South. This game was a back and forth showing between two teams that are playoff-bound. The Saints won this game with a positive turnover differential. The Game result was New Orleans Saints 36, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 27.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Quarterback
Tom Brady: 28/40, 375, 4 TD 2 INT| 1 carry, 2 yards
WIDE OPEN. @TomBrady connects with @cyrilgraysonjr for a 50-yard TD to give Tampa the lead!
📺: #TBvsNO on FOX
📱: NFL app pic.twitter.com/aWwzu39pR3— NFL (@NFL) October 31, 2021
Tom Brady has a problem within his division. Since joining the Bucs, Brady is 1-4 against the New Orleans Saints and has given up seven turnovers to this defense. On Sunday, Brady threw two bad picks and looked like an old man fumbling the football. Brady’s first half saw him throw a TD to Chris Godwin, but also saw him throw a crucial INT that led to a Saints TD.
Brady’s second half was better as he dug the Bucs out of a 16 point hole with touchdowns to Gio Bernard, Mike Evans, and Cyril Grayson. The Bucs were looking good going into the final drive with 1:53 left on the clock and only down two points. This is when the G.O.A.T is supposed to thrive, instead, he threw back-to-back interceptable passes at PJ Williams. The second pass was intercepted by Williams and taken to the house for a 40-yard return. The last drive seemed useless with a nine-point deficit, but Brady was sacked twice for a loss of 19 yards.
This doesn’t make us trust Brady less, but it does instill the idea that the great one is still vulnerable and could have a bad day in football while producing for fantasy. He’s still one of the best in the game and shouldn’t be moved in fantasy football.
Running Back
Gio Bernard: 2 carries, 30 yards| 1 target, 1 reception, 7 yards TD
Leonard Fournette: 8 carries, 26 yards | 5 targets, 3 receptions, 17 yards
Ronald Jones: 3 carries, 13 yards | 1 target, 1 reception, 6 yards
Leonard Fournette started the game as the number one back and if it wasn’t for an incomplete pass that he bobbled at the goal line he would’ve had a TD. Otherwise, this wasn’t the game script for Fournette with the Saints defense being particularly good against the run and the Bucs being down early. One guy who did well was Gio Bernard, who had his day recovered by a seven-yard TD reception.
Gene Deckerhoff calls Tom Brady's touchdown pass to Gio Bernard #GoBucs pic.twitter.com/Rl35XZpKWQ
— Bucs Rays Bolts (@BucsRaysBoltsYT) October 31, 2021
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Chris Godwin: 12 targets, 8 receptions, 140 yards, TD
Tyler Johnson: 6 targets, 5 receptions, 65 yards
Cyril Grayson: 1 target, 1 reception, 50 yards, TD
Mike Evans: 4 targets, 2 receptions, 48 yards, TD
OJ Howard: 3 targets, 2 receptions, 16 yards
Cameron Brate: 4 targets, 2 receptions, 15 yards
Jaelon Darden: 3 targets, 3 receptions, 11 yards
Feed Chris Godwin 🎯 pic.twitter.com/8OGAp3OmWE
— PFF Fantasy & Betting (@PFF_Fantasy) October 31, 2021
Chris Godwin was an absolute beast on Sunday, with 12 targets, 8 receptions, and 140 yards. Godwin started his day by turning a four-yard reception into a 25-yard run. This ended up being nothing compared to the 44-yard run he stretched out from a six-yard catch. Godwin’s best play might have been his TD catch, pinballing his way into the endzone.
Mike Evans showed up just in time to beat Marshon Lattimore for a 41 yard TD. Just when you think the Bucs have enough weapons they bring out track star Cyril Grayson who absolutely shredded the coverage and walked into the endzone. This is a guy to watch going forward, with Antonio Brown and Scotty Miller out, the Bucs need a speedster. Tyler Johnson played well today in a surprise day for him, getting targeted six times and putting together five catches for 65 yards, but he did have a bad drop late in the game that may result in him getting fewer looks moving forward.
New Orleans Saints
Quarterback
Trevor Siemian: 16/29, 159 yards, TD | 2 carries, 2 yards
Jameis Winston: 6/10, 56 yards, TD | 4 carries, 40 yards
Jameis Winston started the game and was looking good. He had an absolute dime of a pass to Trequan Smith in the corner of the endzone. One thing I’ve appreciated about Winston’s game has been his desire to make plays with his feet, getting 40 yards on four carries. Unfortunately, Winston went down with a knee injury that as of writing the piece I don’t know the diagnosis of. I hope it’s better than it looked because I like Jameis’ potential in this offense going forward.
Trevor Siemian came on in relief of Winston and just got better throughout the game. He had some bright spots like a one-yard TD to Alex Armah. I think the best thing Siemian did for the Saints was that he did not turn over the ball, while their defense terrorized Tom Brady. Hopefully, Winston is back soon, because while Siemian was good today I don’t want to trust him long-term.
Perfectly thrown ball from @Jaboowins! #Saints
📺: #TBvsNO on FOX
📱: NFL app pic.twitter.com/qnT3saGcfV— NFL (@NFL) October 31, 2021
Running Back
Alvin Kamara: 19 carries, 61 yards, TD | 4 targets, 3 receptions, 15 yards
Mark Ingram: 6 carries, 27 yards | 2 targets, 2 receptions, 25 yards
Mark Ingram is back in the “Big Easy” and he looked really good in his limited reps this week. His first catch went for 18 yards and his longest run of the game was an 11 yarder. While I’m not expecting a lot from Ingram, I do see a world where he becomes a TD vulture. Alvin Kamara had a good game, with his biggest runs of the day being 11 and 10 yards. He also had a TD run that saved his fantasy outlook for the game.
Only Alvin Kamara could make a juggled TD look so smooth pic.twitter.com/QDQoQpVdil
— PFF Fantasy & Betting (@PFF_Fantasy) October 31, 2021
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Kevin White: 1 target, 1 reception, 38 yards
Deonte Harris: 7 targets, 3 receptions, 35 yards
Tre’Quan Smith: 3 targets, 3 receptions, 33 yards, TD
Marquez Callaway: 5 targets, 3 receptions, 30 yards
Garrett Griffin: 3 targets, 3 receptions, 30 yards
Adam Trautman: 6 targets, 2 receptions, 4 yards
Alex Armah: 1 target, 1 reception, 1 yard, TD
Let’s start off by saying this is an incredibly underwhelming receiving corp without Michael Thomas. This game saw the return of Deonte Harris to the lineup, a deep ball speedster who got targeted seven times. The Saints need a playmaker like him badly. While he didn’t break a big run-off this week, he was often running shorter routes and making collect yards after the catch, 13 to be exact. Another player who showed out today was Garrett Griffin, who was also a YAC machine collecting 21 of his 30 yards after the catch. Then there was Kevin White, who caught his first pass in three years, and it was a nice 38-yard pass. Tre’Quan Smith showed out this week catching a TD, and we also got an Alex Armah TD.
Former #Bears 1st round pick Kevin White is reborn.
First catch in 3 years is a 38-yarder.https://t.co/3r2g6lKEpq
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) October 31, 2021
— Justin Herrera (@Semtexmex93 on Twitter)