It wasn't pretty, but the Tampa Bay Buccaneers marched into New Orleans and secured the team's sixth win of the season.
The game was a defensive dream, with Anthony Nelson and Antoine Winfield Jr. combining for three turnovers and seven points -- and it should have been more. Officials frustratingly took points off the board on a scoop-and-score by Winfield in the second quarter on a controversial phantom whistle.
As bad as that was, nothing was more frustrating than watching the Bucs' offense sputter all afternoon. Tampa Bay needed eight plays from the Saints' goal line to score a single touchdown, which sort of sums up how things have been going on that side of the ball lately.
Over the last eight quarters, the Bucs are averaging just 12.5 points per game -- not including defensive touchdowns. That's down significantly from the 27.5 points per game average over the first six weeks.
Nobody knows this better than Baker Mayfield, who used his time at the podium after the win to remind everyone of just how much work still needs to be done.
Baker Mayfield sends a perfect message after Buccaneers' 23-3 win over Saints
To the surprise of absolutely no one, Baker once again displayed elite leadership when going over what happened in New Orleans on Sunday.
"To be at 6-2 with all the guys we've had down and all the guys who have had to step up and get thrown into the fire there, that's awesome to be able to see. Bye week is much needed for this group," Baker said. "We'll always take the wins, don't get me wrong about that, but offensively that wasn't nearly good enough or close to what we want it to look like."
Baker complimented the defense and went so far as to say, "It would be nice if [the offense] could match their energy and play", which is yet another brilliant piece of leadership.
Not only is this the sort of stuff that will play well in the locker room, but it goes a long way in defending a side of the ball that is often a punching bag for fans. Whenever something goes wrong, it's usually the defense and Todd Bowles who get the eye roll, and this is Baker sticking up for them in a big way.
It's accountability, the kind that keeps teams together when things are tough and makes them even better when the going gets good.
"The only reason [New Orleans] got points was because of the turnover right before the half," Baker said. "They played a shutout ballgame in my eyes."
He also didn't take the bait when asked about how satisfying it was to back up his trash talk earlier in the week. Rather than dunk on the Saints, Baker turned the answer back around to further highlight how much work he thinks the team needs to do and how the goals are bigger than just one game.
"Wins are great, they're very hard to come by in this league," Baker said. "That's a tough ball club, we know that and expect that when we play the Saints ... but we've got to be better on offense and score some more points, especially down there in the low red. But we'll take all the wins we can get."
Complimenting the maturity of Baker feels like broken record stuff by now, which makes it even cooler to see his development in Tampa. He's such a core piece of what's working -- and why, as well -- and it's because of stuff like this.