3 Reasons the Saints Will Upset the Buccaneers in Week 2

The 2022 NFL season is in full swing with Week 1 officially behind us. One of the upcoming NFL Week 2 matchups to keep an eye on is an NFC South tilt between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New Orleans Saints. FanDuel Sportsbook's NFL odds currently list the Bucs as 2.5-point road favorites.

The Saints showed a lot of heart in their comeback victory against the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, proving that they should never be counted out. Even if the odds favor Tampa Bay at the moment, New Orleans is more than capable of shocking people again this weekend.

Here are three reasons why the Saints will upset the Buccaneers in Week 2.

Buccaneers vs Saints Week 2

1. Saints Have the Bucs' Number

While division rivalries can be close, that hasn't been the case lately as far as the Bucs and Saints are concerned. New Orleans has dominated its rival over the last four years, winning seven of the eight meetings over that span. If that wasn't impressive enough, the Saints are 4-1 (including playoffs) against the Buccaneers since Tom Brady joined the team in 2020. That includes sweeping both regular-season series during Brady's tenure. Considering that this year's Saints have a better roster than last year and the Bucs are arguably worse, an upset win is within the realm of possibility.

2. The Saints' Improved Passing Game

New Orleans' passing game was one of the NFL's worst in 2021, especially after Jameis Winston got hurt. That's no longer the case, however, as Winston is back with improved weapons. Michael Thomas returned to the team with a pair of touchdown catches last week, and free-agent signee Jarvis Landry already looks comfortable after hauling in seven catches for 114 yards. Even Chris Olave didn't look out of place in his first NFL game. At the end of the day, the Saints have a better passing attack than what the Bucs saw from the Dallas Cowboys last week. With Tampa Bay potentially missing Chris Godwin due to injury, it might be tough for the Bucs to match the Saints' offense blow-for-blow, especially after Tom Brady threw for just 212 passing yards last week.

3. The Saints Have Heart

The Saints showed a ton of heart on Sunday, rallying back from a 26-10 fourth-quarter deficit on the road for a 27-26 victory. Are the Falcons as good as the Bucs? Not even close, but the hard-fought win has given the Saints more confidence than before, as well as comeback experience that will likely come in handy against a superior Tampa Bay squad. It's also important to remember that this game is taking place in New Orleans, where the Saints are 9-3 in their last 12 meetings with the Buccaneers. With the home crowd cheering them on, the Saints' heart could be the difference-maker this week.

Devon Platana is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Devon Platana also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username PepeSilvia0. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.