How to Watch Saints' Playoff Game with Buccaneers Sunday; Gametime, TV, Point Spread
NEW ORLEANS, La. – Tom Brady and Drew Brees are two of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play the game, but they've never before met in the playoffs. That all changes on Sunday night when the Brees and the New Orleans Saints host Brady and his Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Brady is 43 years old and has won six Super Bowls, all with the New England Patriots, This is his first season in Tampa. Brees, who just turned 42, has one Super Bowl ring, and desperately wants another. The Saints feel like they have a good shot this year, but getting past Brady in the Bucs won't be easy.
Here's how to watch the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' game with the New Orleans Saints on Sunday:
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at New Orleans Saints
- WHAT: NFL divisional-round game between the No. 5-seed Tampa Bay Buccaneers and No. 2-seed New Orleans Saints in the NFC playoffs.
- WHEN: Sunday, Jan. 17 at 6:40 p.m. ET
- WHERE: Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, La.
- POINT SPREAD: New Orleans was favored by 3 points on Sunday morning at 9 a.m., according to the DraftKings.com gambling website, but the line has ticked downward after the noon hour. At 1 p.m. ET, the line is now 2.5. Takes a lot to move off that 3 munber. The over/under is at 52.5 now, went up a half-point since the morning.
- TV: FOX
- Stream: FoxSports.com/all-access
- TV Announcers: Joe Buck (play-by-play) and Troy Aikman (color commentary)
- RECORDS: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (12-5, 7-2) on the road this season); New Orleans Saints (13-4, 7-2 at home this season)
- LAST GAME: The Buccaneers went on the road and beat the Washington Football Team 31-23 in the wild-card round. The Saints beat the Chicago Bears 21-9 in New Orleans.
- ALL-TIME SERIES: New Orleans leads the series 37-21 and has won five games in a row in the series.
- LAST MEETING: The two NFC South rivals have played twice this season, with New Orleans winning both times. The Saints won the season opener 34-23 in New Orleans and then embarrassed the Bucs 38-3 on Sunday Night Football on Nov. 8.
- COACHES: Tampa Bay is coached by Bruce Arians, who is in his eighth season as a head coach in the NFL and his second year in Tampa. He has a 77-47-1 overall record and is 2-2 in the playoffs. This is his second playoff game with Tampa Bay. Sean Payton is in his 14th season with the Saints. He has a 143-81 record in the regular season and is 9-7 in the playoffs, including winning Super Bowl XLIV in 2010 against the Indianapolis Colts.
Drew Brees dominated the Chicago Bears a week ago, and now looks to take down Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Bucccaneers. (USA TODAY Sports)
Here are three things to watch for in Sunday's game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the New Orleans Saints:
1. Can Tom Brady solve Saints' defense?
It takes a lot to embarrass Tom Brady, but the Saints did exactly that in their second meeting this year. New Orleans won 38-3, picking off Brady three times when the Bucs' game plan was to literally throw the ball on every play.
The Saints' defensive line does a great job of getting pressure up the middle, and that's the best way to force Brady into mistakes. The Saints were great that day on defense, but the loss can be tagged on Bruce Arians and the coaching staff, too. The Bucs only ran the ball five times the entire game. Tampa Bay will need more balance Sunday, and you can expect to see it with Leonard Fournette getting the start back home in Louisiana. Look for a big game from Fournette, the former LSU star.
2. Is this Drew Brees' farewell to New Orleans?
Multiple reports are out there now from local and national sources that Drew Brees is going to retire at the end of the season and start his broadcasting career. If that's the case, Sunday's game is his last in New Orleans. If the Saints win, they play at Green Bay next week in the NFC title game.
Brees is a sure-fire first-ballot Hall of Famer, and his 80,358 career passing yards are the most in NFL history. He's planning on going to work for NBC after his playing career ends. For the fans in the stands today in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, it's going to be a sad, sad day.
3. Can Bucs slow down Alvin Kamara again?
The Buccaneers defense has done a great job of keeping Saints running back Alvin Kamara in check this season. In two games, he had 21 rushing attempts for just 56 yards, and has 10 receptions, but for only 60 yards.
Tampa Bay has the best run defense in the league, and the best way to beat the Saints is to keep Kamara in check and then force some turnovers out of Drew Brees in the passing game. They hasn't happened in the first two meetings, but it could turn out to be a key on Sunday. Can that Kamara trend continue?
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