Saints' Demario Davis Has Different Approach From Baker Mayfield

There’s always going to be drama when the New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers take the field against one another.

Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield got the conversation going early in the week when he took a shot at New Orleans. Mayfield said "I don't like them" in reference to the Saints and insinuated that New Orleans has played dirty in the past against the Buccaneers.

This has been a topic that has been talked about all week, but Saints linebacker Demario Davis didn't take the bait and give the Buccaneers any locker room material, as seen in a clip shared by WDSU6.

"I love trash talk," Davis said. "I love trash talk, but trash talk isn't going to do anything for anyone before the game. It's only going to do something for you in the game. And you don't have to verbally trash talk. You can trash talk with your game, too. But, I'm for all the smoke inside the white lines. This ain't WrestleMania. So the pregame talk ain't where it's at. You know, it's like we get a chance to really duke it out inside the white lines and I don't think there's nobody that's ducking smoke...

The Saints aren't shying away from their rival

Aug 14, 2025; Carson, CA, USA; New Orleans Saints linebacker Demario Davis (56) during a joint practice against the Los Angeles Rams at the Dignity Health Sports Park. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

"The game is going to sell itself, man. It's a high entertainment business. It sells itself, so there's no words that need to be shared. But, as far as him and me, I've got a ton of respect for him and the way he's playing

On Sunday, the Saints will welcome the Buccaaneers to Caesars Superdome with kick-off scheduled for 3:05 p.m. CDT (4:05 p.m. ET). Surely, there will be some fireworks as there always are when these two teams get together. But, the Saints have avoided saying anything overtly negative in the media in preparation. Davis said the team isn't afraid of any "smoke" but acknowledged that they will do their talking on the field. Saints head coach Kellen Moore talked about how division games are fun and praised Mayfield's play this season, rather than feeding into the drama.

Just because Davis didn't respond through the media to Mayfield's comments, doesn't mean that the Saints won't respond during the game on Sunday. Davis noted that the team can do so in different ways between the lines on Sunday.

The Saints will put up a fight, but clearly they have a different strategy than the Buccaneers quarterback.

More NFL: Kellen Moore Reacts To Baker Mayfield's Shot At Saints