Saints vs. Buccaneers Pregame Report - Week 15

Sunday Night Football sees the Saints and Bucs square off at Raymond James Stadium, with a lot on the line for both teams.

Author:
John Hendrix
Publish date:
Dec 19, 2021 10:02 AM EST

Just about anything and everything has happened this week across the NFL, and the Saints are among the crazy storylines to develop in Week 15. They'll be without their head coach in Sean Payton, giving duties to defensive coordinator Dennis Allen. Tampa is heavily favored in this game, and New Orleans is going to have to pull out all the stops to keep their season alive.

All-Time Series: Saints lead the regular season series 38-21, and have won the past 6 regular season matchups. Tampa has the lone postseason win over New Orleans.

Where to Watch: NBC (7:20 p.m. CT), Mike Tirico, Cris Collinsworth, Michele Tafoya (field reporter)

Where to Stream: Fubo, NFL Mobile, Saints App, NBC Sports App

Where to Listen: WWL Radio locally (105.3FM) with Mike Hoss, Deuce McAllister, and Steve Geller (sideline reporter); National Radio on Westwood One with Ryan Radtke, Anthony Becht; SIRIUS: 81 (NO), 85 (TB), 88 (National) | XM: 226 (NO), 225 (TB), 88 (National) | SXM App: 822 (NO), 829 (NYJ), 88 (National)

Referee: John Hussey

Current Lines: Bucs -11.5 (O/U at 45.5)

Jersey Combo: White Jerseys, Gold Pants

Last 5 Matchups

10/31/21 - Saints 36, Bucs 27
1/17/21 - Bucs 30, Saints 20 (NFC Divisional)
11/8/20 - Saints 38, Bucs 3
9/13/20 - Saints 34, Bucs 23
11/17/19 - Saints 34, Bucs 17

Saints Storylines

Dennis Allen in the Spotlight. As everyone is surely aware of, there will be no Sean Payton in this game. Dennis Allen will assume head coaching responsibilities, while Pete Carmichael Jr. will call plays on offense. Allen said on Friday that really all that's going to be different is making the decisions on 2-point attempts and coaching challenges.

Allen said, "Everybody on staff knows exactly what's expected of us, and our job is to go out there Sunday and perform, and that's what we plan on doing."

Allen's name hasn't come up in a lot of head coaching talk next year, but this is a great opportunity for him to get back into that conversation.

Roster Moves. The Saints get back Adam Trautman this week, as Garrett Griffin was placed on injured reserve. We finally get our first look at what we've been waiting for this season with Trautman and Nick Vannett. Easop Winston Jr. and Forrest Lamp were elevated from the practice squad, while veteran James Carpenter was signed from the practice squad to the active roster. Carpenter will be the jumbo guy, and his size is ideal going against a tough Bucs front.

NFC South Crown. While there's another scenario out there that can give the Bucs the division, the main one is win and it's theirs. It would be fitting to get the crown from the team that won it four straight years, and it's in essence how it should be. Expect New Orleans to give everything they have, and the emphasis is more on how they move the ball offensively.