The Buccaneers came into Sunday’s game with the Saints needing a win at home to become the NFC South champions, but they came out flat in the first half.
Rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler has moved the Saints with ease all afternoon and the Saints have a 16-6 lead at the halftime break in Tampa. The Bucs will get the ball to kick off the second half and a lengthy scoring drive would be a good way to get things going in the third quarter.
Rattler is 21-of-28 for 181 yards and a touchdown to wide receiver Dante Pettis in his strongest half as a professional player. The Buccaneers are missing safeties Antoine Winfield Jr. and Jordan Whitehead along with cornerback Jamel Dean, so some struggles were to be expected but the lack of pass rush has made things even more difficult for the backup defensive backs.
The Saints ran 42 offensive plays to 23 for the Bucs in the first half and Tampa had a three-and-out to go with two field goals. Baker Mayfield is just 9-of-16 for 67 yards and the offensive explosiveness we saw last week is nowhere to be found. If that doesn’t change, it could be a very disappointing day for the Bucs.
