Take care of the football or lose. Texans did not, and did. Tyler Shough threw for Saints — 11/19, 358 yards, 6 TD. Chris Olave was the target for Saints — 3 catches, 219 yards, 3 TD. Chris Olave's high-water mark for the year. Through the air: Saints 358, Texans 175.

Points were scarce. Saints scraped past Panthers 13-7. Tyler Shough threw for Saints — 31/45, 299 yards, 1 TD. Bryce Young was steady for Panthers — 16/31, 205 yards, 1 TD — in a losing effort. Oscar Delp is 74 overall and sits 4 in the league in receiving yards. Somebody undervalued him. Total yards: Saints 395, Panthers 266.

Saints 31, Bears 28. Nobody watching sat down. Tyler Shough was steady for Saints — 16/23, 441 yards, 4 TD, 2 INT. Caleb Williams threw for Bears — 16/28, 292 yards, 4 TD, 1 INT — in a losing effort. Oscar Delp is 73 overall and sits 3 in the league in receiving yards. Somebody undervalued him. Through the air: Saints 441, Bears 310.

Zoe Bell: "Tampa Bay had 381 yards and 125 on the ground and still lost by 6 — that's what 3 giveaways buys you when the other team gives up nothing." Kayla James: "New Orleans is locked in at 5, but Tampa Bay's 2-15 finish means the Bucs are staring down a offseason that demands answers—and fast, because this roster was supposed to compete."

The Saints beat the Buccaneers 34-28 in Week 18, turning the ball over 0 times while Tampa Bay coughed it up 3 times. Baker Mayfield completed 21 of 34 for 256 yards with 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions, while Tyler Shough went 20 of 30 for 268 yards and 2 scores for New Orleans. Emeka Egbuka caught 8 passes for 155 yards and a touchdown, but it wasn't enough to overcome the Buccaneers' giveaways in a game where Tampa Bay dominated on the ground 125 to 57 yet still lost by 6.

Sierra Vaughn: "Arizona couldn't run the ball at all—0 yards on the ground—and that limitation cost them in a shootout they had every chance to win; Geno Smith and Marvin Harrison Jr. put up 496 and 204 yards respectively, matching New Orleans punch for punch at 7 touchdowns apiece, but the Cardinals' refusal or inability to establish anything on the ground left them 16 short." Kayla James: "New Orleans showed up as the better team in a week where both quarterbacks caught fire—Shough's 439 yards and 7 touchdowns were a career statement, but Arizona's 50 points and a division title weren't nearly enough to survive an opponent that simply outgunned them all afternoon."

The Saints beat the Cardinals 66-50 in a passing showcase where New Orleans' ground game decided it. Arizona's Geno Smith threw for 496 yards and 7 touchdowns with Marvin Harrison Jr catching 5 for 204 yards and 3 scores, but the Cardinals managed 0 rushing yards on 2 attempts and committed 3 turnovers. Tyler Shough matched Smith's 7 touchdown passes while throwing for 439 yards, and New Orleans added 85 rushing yards to secure the 16-point win and improve to 10-5.

Jordan Hayes: "Green Bay got outplayed in the trenches—6 sacks is too many to survive, and it happened because the Saints' front dominated a Pack offense that couldn't establish anything on the ground. They had their chances and couldn't close."