The Tampa Bay Buccaneers needed to bounce back in Week 8 after a disappointing loss against the Detroit Lions. Fortunately, they had their little brothers in the NFC South, the New Orleans Saints, on the docket.
By no stretch of the imagination did the Bucs play their best game of the year, but still, they traveled down to Caesars Superdome and clobbered their divisional opponent, 23-3. The defense truly bailed out the offense in their second-straight helter-skelter performance.
Things actually got so bad for New Orleans that they made an in-game change at quarterback, bringing in second-round rookie Tyler Shough for Spencer Rattler. Shough wasn't any better, as he turned the ball over once and was shut out in the second half by Todd Bowles and the defense.
Bucs beat the Saints so bad that New Orleans is changing quarterbacks
On Tuesday, however, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported that the Saints were making the aforementioned quarterback change permanent. New Orleans confirmed this by announcing that Shough will start in Week 9 against the Los Angeles Rams.
It's gratifying as a Bucs fan to know that, even though the team hasn't played its best football as of late, they're still wreaking havoc on their NFC South foes. In fact, they must have beaten the Saints down so much internally that the franchise is now in a tailspin, changing quarterbacks.
Fortunately for Tampa Bay, New Orleans' only playable card in the deck is turning to Shough, the 26-year-old rookie who lost the battle to Rattler in the first place and had exactly one impressive collegiate season before being drafted.
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Throwing a rookie in to start against the Rams' defensive line, which has the second-most sacks in the league, is like tossing Shough into the deep end. He'll get a reprieve the following week against the Carolina Panthers, but a tough Atlanta Falcons defense looms in Week 12 after their bye.
Even knowing that the road ahead is difficult, Kellen Moore and Co. felt it was best to abandon the Spencer Rattler experiment after the abysmal showing that he put together against the Bucs on Sunday.
Tampa Bay already had a firm grip on the NFC South, but with each of its divisional foes spiraling, the gap continues to widen. At least for the Saints, the Bucs have themselves to thank for their rival plummeting into further chaos.