TAMPA, Fla. — Carl Granderson had an idea what was coming, thanks to what happened 42 days earlier.

In October, during in the first meeting between the New Orleans Saints and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Saints bottled up their NFC South rival’s rushing attack with a dominant goal-line stand. And they nearly had another later on.

So on Sunday, when the Buccaneers lined up to go for it on fourth-and-1 from midfield, Granderson knew there was no way that Tampa Bay would send Bucky Irving straight ahead. Not after last time.

“We stuffed the middle like a turkey,” Granderson said. “They couldn’t run up the middle. … We knew they were going to try and hit (the) outside. It was a wrap after that.”

Granderson read the pitch and immediately wrapped up the running back for a 7-yard loss — the first of a remarkable five fourth-down stops in New Orleans’ 24-20 win over the Buccaneers. Tampa Bay finished the afternoon just 2 of 7 on fourth down.

Like in the previous matchup, the Saints controlled the line of scrimmage. Sure, Tampa Bay rushed for 179 yards on 39 carries. But more often than not, when the Buccaneers needed just a few yards to keep their drives alive, it was the Saints’ defensive line that blew up the play as soon as it started.

And this time, unlike the first meeting, they won the game.

“Everything’s on the line,” Saints defensive end Cam Jordan said of those fourth-down moments. “That’s what gets players excited. When you’re on defense, you’re like, ‘Man, put it on me. Put it on us.’”

Each stop proved huge for New Orleans. Excluding quarterback Baker Mayfield’s batted-down Hail Mary right before halftime, three of the other four stops gave New Orleans great field position. And though they initially failed to capitalize on several of the chances, the offense finally delivered in the fourth quarter when they scored the game-deciding touchdown fresh off cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry’s fourth-and-2 pass breakup.

McKinstry’s PBU in particular also showed how it wasn’t just the defensive line that changed the game. The Bucs’ Chris Godwin initially appeared to catch the pass right in front of the chains when the second-year cornerback came flying in with a thunderous hit, causing the wide receiver to bobble the ball and force the incompletion.

“I went up to him and told him, ‘Man, I don’t think you realize how big a play that was,” cornerback Alontae Taylor said.

To even get to fourth down, the Saints had to be excellent on third down. And they responded with some of their best effort of the season. New Orleans held Tampa Bay to 3 of 13 on third down, which tied a season-best percentage for the Saints. What was the other game? The first Bucs’ meeting, of course. Tampa Bay also went 3 of 13 in that one.

Maybe the most important of all of them was Michael Davis’ coverage on tight end Cade Otton with just under five minutes left. Davis, a seldom-used corner, was on the field as part of a package that required another defensive back. But he blanketed the tight end, preventing him from catching a potential game-tying touchdown.

Tampa Bay settled for the field goal, its last points of the afternoon.

“We’re there to ruin their season,” Davis said. “We’re out of playoff contention. They’re still in the hunt, so we’ve got to ruin their season. We came in here and played hard. They underestimated us a little bit.”

The Saints indeed played spoiler. The Buccaneers fell to 7-6 on the season, dropping them into a first-place tie with the Carolina Panthers. Tampa Bay and Carolina still have to face each other twice in the final four games, putting the NFC South very much up for grabs.

New Orleans, at 3-10, won’t be part of that divisional hunt. But so much of this season has been about building a foundation for the future. And a win over a team like the Buccaneers — who have won the South four straight years — only adds to that.

They were even tested in new ways Sunday, 13 games into the campaign. Demario Davis said the defense had been waiting all year for a game to truly be put on their shoulders in the final minutes. And with 1:48 left, Davis and the unit got their wish. The defense took the field, needing to prevent Tampa Bay from driving 80 yards for a game-winning touchdown.

“It was like a dog licking its chops,” the linebacker said.

The Buccaneers instead went 9, stopped just short of the sticks on fourth-and-4.