The New Orleans Saints are not the only ones ecstatic with their 24-20 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at rainy Raymond James Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
After beating the Los Angeles Rams last week, the Carolina Panthers moved to 7-6 heading into their bye week. The Bucs, sitting at 7-5 entering their game against the Saints, had a chance to take a lead in the NFC South division race.
Instead, rookie quarterback Tyler Shough, despite his Saints owning a 2-10 record entering the game, made things very interesting in the division as both the Bucs and Panthers are 7-6 heading into Week 15.
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And Shough wasn’t really getting the job done with his arm, but rather his legs as his first career touchdown runs were critical in the win.
The biggest one was is the fourth quarter after the Bucs turned it over on downs in a 17-17 game. It was a miraculously escape in the pocket by Shough, who everyone in the building and watching at home thought was about to take a sack.
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But Shough was able to escape to his left and he saw a seam that looked enticing. Shough put on the jets and he ducked as he reached the end zone, crossing the goal line for a 13-yard touchdown run that was the eventual game winner.
The Saints’ defense came up clutch in the end, forcing a field goal on a promising drive for Tampa Bay. Then, after killing some clock, New Orleans punted away with Baker Mayfield and the Bucs’ offense having the chance at a much-needed comeback for their division hopes.
But just four plays later, the Saints turned the Bucs over on downs again, as tight end Cade Otton was short of the line to gain on 4th-and-4.
New Orleans also got a lot of help in the ground game from rookie Devin Neal, who continues to play well in the absence of an injured Alvin Kamara. He scored the game’s first touchdown while rushing for 70 yards on 19 carries. Shough finished with 55 yards on the ground, while passing for 144 yards with no touchdowns and one interception.
On the other side of the box score, Mayfield was just 14-of-30 for 122 yards with one touchdown and one interception, as the weather was clearly affecting his confidence in hitting his guys. Bucky Irving, who had a 24-yard touchdown catch, had 55 yards rushing, though it was Sean Tucker busting one into the end zone on the ground in this game.
This game may have been different, though, if Mayfield was able to connect with his rookie receiver Emeka Egbuka on the fourth-quarter drive that ended up in a field goal for Chase McLaughlin. The ball was perfectly placed and it’s one he’s made numerous times in his great season thus far.
However, it slipped out of his hands on what would’ve been a massive game-tying score for Tampa Bay. Egbuka had just two catches for 26 yards, while Chris Godwin led the Bucs with 55 yards receiving on five grabs.
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