Tom Brady And Tampa Bay Win Fight Against Saints, 20-10, Breaking Voodoo Hex
NEW ORLEANS - Tampa Bay quarterback Tom Brady solved the Saints' voodoo curse against him with a vengeance as the Buccaneers won 20-10 at the Superdome on Sunday afternoon.
Brady threw a 28-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter - something he had not done through his previous seven quarters againts the Saints - for a 10-3 lead with 7:41 left. He finished only 18-of-34 passing for a very Brady-average 190 yards. But for him against the Saints, it was something. His last TD pass against New Orleans came in the fourth quarter of a loss on Halloween night last year.
The Saints beat the Bucs 9-0 in the second meeting last season, which was Brady's first home shutout in hs 23-year career, most of which was with New England.
Brady snapped an 0-for-4 losing streak against the Saints in the regular season since coming to Tampa Bay from New England before the 2020 season. He found wide receiver Breshad Perriman for the touchdown.
The go-ahead score happened a few minutes after a huge melee broke out between New Orleans cornerback Marshon Lattimore and Tampa Bay wide receiver Mike Evans, rekindling a feud that has lasted for years. Both were ejected from the game.
GUESS WHO STARTED THE FIGHT? TOM BRADY
The Saints (1-1) had appeared on the verge of taking a 6-3 or 10-3 lead themelves late in the third quarter when running back Mark Ingram fumbled at the Bucs' 10-yard line following a 10-yard rush up the middle through a large hole.
Tampa Bay (2-0) took a 13-3 lead on a 47-yard field goal by Ryan Succop with 5:50 to play. The field goal was set up by cornerback Jamel Dean's second interception of Saints' quarterback and former Buc Jameis Winston in consecutive series.
Winston then threw another interception to safety Mike Edwards, who returned it 68 yards for a touchdown and 20-3 lead with 4:10 to go. Winston threw a meaningless, 7-yard touchdown to wide receiver Michael Thomas with 3:02 remaining for the 20-10 final.
Winston's own voodoo interception curse returned, which was why Tampa Bay let him go to free agency after the 2019 season. New Orleans picked him up before the 2020 season. Winston threw three interceptions in the fourth quarter in all and finished 25-of-40 passing for 236 yards. The Saints fumbled twice to with the interceptions for five turnovers from late in the third quarter on.
"You can't have five turnovers and win," Saints coach Dennis Allen said.