For the second week in a row, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will hit the road. Tampa Bay will travel to New Orleans to take on the division rival Saints on Sunday at Caesars Superdome. The 5-2 first-place Bucs in the NFC South will battle against the last-place 1-6 Saints. The Bucs swept New Orleans in 2024 and the club has won five of the previous six meetings. Tampa Bay is coming off a 24-9 loss to the Lions in Week Seven at Ford Field and will strive to get back on track in an intradivisional clash against the Kellen Moore-led squad. The Saints are off to their worst start in a quarter-century (1999), but three of their six losses have come by seven or fewer points. They have played teams close and New Orleans has seemingly found its rhythm on offense with Spencer Rattler at the helm.

Tristan Wirfs

Tristan Wirfs missed the first three games of the 2025 campaign while recovering from knee surgery but has returned to peak form. He became the first player in NFL lore to earn first-team AP All-Pro honors at both right and left tackle and anchors the Bucs' unit. Wirfs is an agile mover in space and can slide with the best edge rushers in the game. Last season, Wirfs allowed just a 4.7% pressure rate, which ranked second among all NFL left tackles who faced at least 200 pass-rush snaps. On Sunday, Wirfs will face Carl Granderson, who could be on his way to a breakout year with a team-best 4.5 sacks. Granderson posted at least 5.5 sacks in each of the last three seasons and in 2024, he accounted for 24.7% of the Saints total quarterback pressures - the eighth-highest pressure rate for any player in the NFL. Granderson has an effective speed-to-power conversion and has a lethal spin move to counter tackles. He can get skinny on inside moves to disrupt and this will be a pivotal one-on-one in the trenches inside the Superdome.

Benjamin Morrison

Rashid Shaheed is the Saints' big-play threat and is averaging 11.9 yards per reception, down from his 17.5 last season. From 2022-24, Shaheed caught nine passes that traveled 50 or more yards in the air, the most among all NFL players in that span. He is a deep threat and can blow past defenders. Shaheed is electric with the ball in his hands and is fluid on the field with athleticism as his calling card. Bucs' rookie cornerback Benjamin Morrison has missed three games due to injury, but when he has been healthy, he has rotated in as an outside cornerback. There will likely be some stints in the Week Eight matchup in which Morrison is tasked with preventing Shaheed from hitting one of his trademark explosives. Morrison plays with controlled balance and has lateral movement skills with a smooth backpedal.

Cade Otton

Cade Otton has accumulated 16 catches for 197 yards over the last three games, moving the chains for the offense. He has received an uptick in receptions out of two-tight end sets with Payne Durham to counteract injuries to the receiver room. Few tight ends in the NFL are as multi-dimensional as Otton. He can run a full route tree – options, wheels, corners – and is adept on choice routes (inside or outside release), as well as chip and release routes. Otton is a selfless blocker and is strong at the point of attack. He has paved the way for several of Rachaad White's runs on pulls and Otton does not provide a tell to the defense when he is in the game due to his versatility. At times on Sunday, he will face Saints' tone-setter Demario Davis. He leads the Saints with 61 tackles and quickly reads and diagnoses, calling out offensive plays to get the defense lined up pre-snap. Davis has been one of the best in the league at his position over the previous decade and does it all at a high level: Blitzes, defends the run and disrupts the catch window. He is a tenacious hitter, knocking the mouthpiece out. Davis crashes the pocket on A-gap blitzes and bull rushes linemen like a defensive tackle. From 2018-23, Davis led all NFL defenders with an average of 5.5 yards allowed on plays when he was the targeted defender.

Tykee Smith

Tykee Smith leads the Bucs in tackles with 58 and is the only player in the NFL with 50-plus tackles, 2.0-plus sacks and five-plus passes defensed. He had a safety blitz off the edge against Jared Goff in Week Seven and has been one of Tampa Bay's most consistent defenders in 2025. Smith plays with the mindset of a linebacker near the line of scrimmage and pairs great short-area burst with a quick trigger downhill. He delivers a blow at the point of contact and he will play a key role in limiting Alvin Kamara on Sunday. Most of the damage that offenses have inflicted on the Bucs with the usage of backs has come in the passing game off checkdowns and screens, forcing the Bucs to take effective angles of pursuit in the open field. Kamara presents an upside as a pass-catcher and creates yardage with speed and power. He can spin off bodies to gain additional yards-after-catch and possesses outstanding burst out of his breaks.

Jamel Dean

Chris Olave leads the Saints in receptions (44), receiving yards (440) and receiving touchdowns (three) and has become a go-to target for Spencer Rattler. Olave possesses an advanced route tree in his arsenal and plays with good snap anticipation to manipulate defensive backs. He has superb body control and tempo on routes, along with feel for coverage voids in zone. On Sunday, he will face off with the Bucs' Jamel Dean. Dean has three interceptions in his last four games played, setting a new single-season career high in that category. He has allowed the lowest passer rating when targeted with a minimum of 20 defensive targets per Next Gen Stats (18.7). Dean has elite recovery speed and has lateral quickness to stay in solid positioning from press. He accelerates quickly to top speed and uses his length to his advantage to crowd the catch space.