The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are slowly getting healthier as they look to finish the season strong after a rough patch over the past couple of weeks. In Week 13, they defeated the Arizona Cardinals to improve to 7-5 as they stay atop the NFC South.

Next up for them is the New Orleans Saints for the second time this year.

When they met for the first time in Week 8, they had chased away starting quarterback Spencer Rattler as the team went with rookie Tyler Shough in the second half. After a few weeks under his belt, the former Louisville Cardinal has brought some life to the passing game, so he will be a tougher challenge for the Bucs. That being said, this was a one-sided game when they first met, so how close can or should it be?

Here is our live blog of the matchup.

The Bucs missed a wide-open Emeka Egbuka, and a pass interference no-call had the Bucs settle for three points. Chase McLaughlin connected from 37 yards out to bring the score to 24-20 in favor of the New Orleans Saints.

The New Orleans Saints may have their quarterback of the future as Tyler Shough pulled a Houdini and evaded tacklers in the backfield only to turn upfield and score. He ran it in from 13 yards out and ended it by meeting Zyon McCollum head-on at the pylon. The Saints are now up 24-17 with 8:26 left in the fourth quarter.

The Saints hit a field goal from 30 yards out to tie the game at 17-17 as they head into the fourth quarter.

Sean Tucker got a goal-line carry and punched it in from one yard out, and the Bucs now take the lead back. They are up 17-14 with 7:37 left in the third quarter.

Rookie quarterback Tyler Shough is missing his former All-Pro running back, Alvin Kamara, today against the Saints. Perhaps that is why he had the mentality of “I will do it myself” when he ran for 34 yards and scored to give the Saints the lead. New Orleans now leads Tampa Bay by a score of 14-10.

The Bucs kicker has been Mr. Consistent all year long. He connects from 41 yards out in the rain and wind to give Tampa Bay the lead by a score of 10-7 with 9:11 left in the second quarter.

In what was a major miscommunication between Chris Olave and Tyler Shough, their pass went way beyond where they intended. The result was that it was like catching a pass directed at McCollum as he caught the interception to give the Bucs momentum in the second quarter.

Baker Mayfield finds Bucky Irving out of the backfield, and he does the rest. From 24 yards out, Irving navigated the Saints ‘ defense and tied the game up at seven as a result.

The Saints returned the opening kickoff deep into Bucs territory and then proceeded to march down the field. Running back Devin Neal punched it in at the goal line and gave them a 7-0 lead to start things for New Orleans.

The Bucs will officially be without Tristan Wirfs for Week 14 against the New Orleans Saints. On defense, the team will be cut down at the cornerback position as Benjamin Morrison misses another game this year.

Bucs regular-season schedule 2025

Below is Tampa Bay’s regular-season schedule.

Week 1: W, 30-27 over the Atlanta Falcons (1-0)Week 2: W, 20-19 over the Houston Texans (2-0)Week 3: W, 29-27 over the New York Jets (3-0)Week 4: L, 31-25 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles (3-1)Week 5: W, 38-35 over the Seattle Seahawks (4-1)Week 6: W, 30-19 over the San Francisco 49ers (5-1)Week 7: L, 24-9 loss to the Detroit Lions (5-2)Week 8: W, 23-3 win over the New Orleans Saints (6-2)Week 9: BYE WeekWeek 10: L, 28-23 loss to the New England Patriots (6-3)Week 11: L, 44-32 loss to the Buffalo Bills (6-4)Week 12: L, 34-7 loss to the Los Angeles Rams (6-5)Week 13: W, 20-17 win over the Arizona Cardinals (7-5)Week 14: Sunday, Dec. 7, New Orleans Saints, 1:00 P.M., CBSWeek 15: Thursday, Dec. 11, Atlanta Falcons, 8:15 P.M., Amazon PrimeWeek 16: Sunday, Dec. 21, at Carolina Panthers, 4:30 P.M., FOXWeek 17: Sunday, Dec. 28, at Miami Dolphins, 1:00 P.M., FOXWeek 18: Sunday, Jan. 4, Carolina Panthers, Time TBA, Channel TBA