Rain. Buckets of it. That’s the first thing anyone who was at Raymond James Stadium on December 7, 2025, remembers. It wasn't just a football game; it was a swampy mess that flipped the NFC South on its head. If you’re looking for the Tampa Bay and New Orleans score from their most recent clash, it was a 24-20 shocker in favor of the Saints.
Nobody saw it coming.
The Bucs were sitting at 7-6, fighting for divisional dominance. The Saints? They were a 2-10 team that looked like they were already scouting top-five draft picks. But as they say, throw the records out the window when these two meet. Honestly, it’s one of the weirdest rivalries in the NFL because the "worse" team wins way more often than they should.
The Day the Rookie Took Over
Tyler Shough. If you aren't a die-hard New Orleans fan or a Louisville alum, you might have barely known the name before that Sunday. Shough, the Saints' rookie second-rounder, basically put the team on his back in the mud. He didn't light up the stat sheet through the air—he only went 13-of-20 for 144 yards—but his legs were the difference maker.
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He ran for two touchdowns. One was a 34-yarder where he looked like a gazelle in cleats, and the other was a 13-yard scramble in the fourth quarter that ended up being the dagger. It’s kinda wild to think a rookie quarterback on a struggling team could walk into Tampa and outduel Baker Mayfield in a rainstorm, but that’s exactly what happened.
Baker had a rough one. 122 yards. One touchdown. One costly interception to Alontae Taylor right after halftime. When the Tampa Bay and New Orleans score flashed 24-20 at the final whistle, the silence in Tampa was deafening.
Digging Into the Box Score
Let's look at how this actually went down because the numbers tell a story of missed opportunities for the Buccaneers.
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- Third Down Failures: Tampa Bay went 3-of-13 on third downs. You can't win in this league if you can't stay on the field.
- Fourth Down Gambles: Todd Bowles was aggressive, but it backfired. The Bucs went 2-of-7 on fourth down attempts.
- The Ground Game: Bucky Irving was actually a bright spot with a 24-yard touchdown catch-and-run, but it wasn't enough to offset the Saints' efficiency.
- Defensive Standouts: Vita Vea did his thing with a sack and five tackles, but the Bucs' defense just couldn't contain Shough when the play broke down.
New Orleans played "ugly" football, and in a tropical depression, ugly wins. Devin Neal, another rookie, pounded the rock 19 times for 70 yards and a score. It was a classic "keep it simple" game plan by Kellen Moore that exposed some cracks in the Tampa Bay front seven.
What Most People Get Wrong About This Rivalry
People think the Bucs have had the Saints' number since Tom Brady arrived a few years back. Not true. Even when the Saints are down, they play Tampa Bay with a specific type of nastiness.
Earlier in the 2025 season, back in Week 8, the Bucs actually crushed New Orleans 23-3. That game was a total blowout at the Superdome. Most analysts assumed the rematch in December would be more of the same. That’s the trap. NFL divisional games are rarely linear. The 20-point swing from the first meeting to the second is why betting on the NFC South is a quick way to lose your shirt.
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The Impact on the Standings
The loss was devastating for Tampa's playoff seeding. They fell to 7-7 after a follow-up loss to Atlanta, eventually needing a gritty Week 18 win against Carolina (16-14) just to keep their heads above water.
Meanwhile, for New Orleans, that 24-20 victory was their Super Bowl for the year. It proved that Shough might actually be the guy moving forward. It’s rare to see a 3-10 team celebrate that hard, but beating a rival on the road in a monsoon will do that to you.
Key Lessons from the Matchup
- Preparation for Elements: The Saints' equipment crew clearly had the right studs for the turf. Tampa players were slipping all over the place in the first half.
- Rookie QB Mobility: Defensive coordinators are still struggling to account for Tyler Shough's rushing floor.
- Red Zone Efficiency: New Orleans capitalized on short fields provided by Tampa's turnovers and failed fourth-down tries.
If you’re tracking the Tampa Bay and New Orleans score for historical context or future betting, remember that the home-field advantage in this series is almost non-existent. The underdog has covered the spread in four of the last six meetings.
The rivalry is alive and well, even if the records don't always match. The next time these two meet in 2026, don't look at the standings. Look at the weather report and the injury list for the offensive line. That’s where the real story is told.
To stay ahead of the curve for the 2026 season, you should keep a close eye on the Saints' draft moves to see if they continue building around Shough's mobile style. For the Bucs, the focus has to stay on Baker Mayfield’s consistency in high-pressure divisional games. You might want to re-watch the Week 14 highlights to see exactly how the Saints' secondary disguised those coverages that baited Baker into the Alontae Taylor pick.