Back on the winning track, Buccaneers can't afford a letdown against struggling Saints

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers know records don’t matter when they face the New Orleans Saints.

The Bucs (7-5) can’t let the struggling Saints (2-10) play spoiler.

“We don’t like them; they don’t like us,” Mayfield said. “They play hard, you can see it on the tape based on the other games that they’ve played since we’ve played them last and it shows. We know what to expect. Record doesn’t indicate how physical this matchup is going to be (and) what a tough matchup it is.

"They know us, we know them well, so it’s one of those, who can execute better and be the more physical team?”

The four-time defending NFC South champions got back on the winning track last week following a three-game losing streak. They have just a half-game lead over Carolina (7-6) and will face the Panthers twice in the final three weeks. But Mayfield knows they can’t look ahead, and he isn’t thinking about the success of Panthers coach Dave Canales, who helped him revive his career when he was the offensive coordinator in Tampa Bay in 2023.

“We’ve got the Saints this week. Dave can do what he wants,” he said, referring to Carolina’s bye.

The Saints played tough against Miami last week, losing 21-17 after a 2-point conversation that would’ve tied the game was picked and returned the other way.

“We’re a team that keeps fighting. When you’re fighting an uphill battle, you have to eventually reach the top of the hill,” Saints defensive end Cameron Jordan said. “We’re taking shots, we’re swinging and you just wish they would fall in our favor and they haven’t for whatever reason this year.”

The Bucs are starting to get healthier after injuries depleted the offense. Running back Bucky Irving returned last week and provided a spark. Wide receiver Chris Godwin Jr. came back two weeks ago. Star receiver Mike Evans and wideout Jalen McMillan began practicing this week. Mayfield can’t wait to have them back.

“It will keep getting better for us, but like I said last week, we have all we need to win right now,” Mayfield said. “Those pieces will be bonuses for us, but we need to execute with what we have right now.”

Saints rookie QB Tyler Shough is trying to narrow his focus each day and not dwell on how significantly the New Orleans' final five games could influence his career trajectory.

The Saints are on track for a very high draft pick and some of this season’s best college QB’s could be there for the taking next spring.

“You've got to operate day by day, game by game and understand that how I operate within the building every single day, communication-wise, my play style and what I put on tape is going to determine” whether the Saints keep looking for a franchise QB, said Shough.

“I feel like I am that guy, I can be that guy,” he added.

Shough enters his fifth start having completed 65.2% of his passes for 1,068 yards and five TDs vs. four interceptions.

All-Pro left tackle Tristan Wirfs showed off his hands last week, catching a 2-yard TD pass from Mayfield in a 20-17 victory over the Cardinals. The Bucs had only recently installed that play and didn’t practice it much. But it was executed perfectly when offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard called it in the first half.

“To be totally honest, I didn’t think it would ever get called,” center Graham Barton said. “We practiced it once or twice, so I’m like, ‘Yeah, right,’ and then it gets called and I’m like, ‘All right, here we go.’ He makes a great catch.”

Bucs coach Todd Bowles' defenses have had plenty of success against rookie QBs since he first arrived in Tampa Bay as the defensive coordinator under Bruce Arians in 2019.

But Bowles sees several aspects of Shough's skill set that could present challenges for the Bucs.

“He’s faster than I thought,” Bowles said. “He plays with a lot of confidence, has a very quick release, very accurate. He’s a hell of a competitor.”

Saints versatile offensive threat Taysom Hill, who can serve as a wildcat QB, tight end or running back, saw his usage plummet last week to just one run and one catch. But Saints coach Kellen Moore said Hill was more a victim of circumstance.

“Early in the game, the run game wasn’t working," Moore said, noting he adjusted play-calling to focus more on pass plays in which Hill didn't figure prominently. "Taysom’s (snaps) probably weren’t ideally what you’d want them to be.

“You look at the two previous weeks, he had a nice impact on both those games playing close to 25-some snaps,” Moore added. "That’s probably where it should be more often than not.”

AP Sports Writer Brett Martel contributed.

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New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) scores a two-point conversion during the second half of an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins Sunday, Nov. 30, 2025, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) speaks during a news conference following an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins Sunday, Nov. 30, 2025, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) runs past Arizona Cardinals safety Jalen Thompson (34) during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 30, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield answers a question during a news conference after an NFL football game against the Arizona Cardinals Sunday, Nov. 30, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Qatar’s prime minister on Saturday said the Gaza ceasefire has reached a “critical moment” as its first phase winds down, with the remains of just one Israeli hostage still held by militants.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani told an international conference in the Qatari capital that international mediators, led by the U.S., are working “to force the way forward” to the second phase to cement the deal.

“What we have just done is a pause,” he told the Doha Forum. “We cannot consider it yet a ceasefire.”

“A ceasefire cannot be completed unless there is a full withdrawal of Israeli forces, there is stability back in Gaza, people can go in and out, which is not the case today,” he said.

While the ceasefire halted the heavy fighting of the two-year war, Gaza health officials say that over 360 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since the truce took effect in October.

In new violence, two Palestinians were killed in an Israeli airstrike northwest of Gaza City, Shifa Hospital said.

Israel's army said it wasn't aware of an airstrike in that location. However, it said that Israeli soldiers on Saturday killed three militants who crossed the “yellow line” into Israeli-controlled northern part of Gaza and “posed an immediate threat."

Since the ceasefire, the Israeli army says it has carried out a number of attacks on Palestinians crossing the ceasefire lines.

The first phase of U.S. President Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan took effect Oct. 10. The fighting stopped and dozens of hostages held in Gaza were exchanged for hundreds of Palestinians held in Israeli prison. Israel sent a delegation last week to Egypt for talks on returning the remains of the last hostage.

The next phase, which includes the deployment of an international security force in Gaza, formation of a new technocratic government for the territory, disarmament of Hamas and an eventual withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, has not yet begun.

Arab and Western officials told The Associated Press on Friday that an international body overseeing the ceasefire, to be led by Trump himself, is expected to be appointed by the end of the year. In the long term, the plan also calls for a possible “pathway” to Palestinian independence.

Sheikh Mohammed said that even the upcoming phase should be “temporary” and that peace in the region could only take place with the eventual establishment of a Palestinian state — something that is opposed by Israel's hard-line government.

“If we are just resolving what happened in Gaza, the catastrophe that happened in the last two years, it’s not enough,” he said. “There is a root for this conflict. And this conflict is not only about Gaza."

He added: “It’s about Gaza. It’s about the West Bank. It’s about the rights of the Palestinians for their state. We are hoping that we can work together with the U.S. administration to achieve this vision at the end of the day.”

Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said there is a “big question” over the formation of an international security force for Gaza. Speaking at the same conference, he said it's unclear which countries will be joining the force, what the command structure would look like and what its “first mission” will be.

Turkey is one of the “guarantors” of the ceasefire, but Israel, which has rocky relations with the Ankara government, has rejected any Turkish participation in the force.

“Thousands of details, questions are in place,” Fidan said. "I think once we deploy ISF, the rest will come.”

A day after an overwhelming international endorsement, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees said its future role in Gaza is unclear.

Throughout the war, Israel and the United States have sidelined UNRWA, accusing it cooperating with Hamas, a charge UNRWA denies.

Tamara Alrifai, UNRWA’s director of external relations and communications, said her agency continues to offer humanitarian and educational services in Gaza. But she said UNRWA has been excluded from U.S.-led talks on the second phase of the ceasefire.

Alrifai said that UNRWA serves as the de facto “public sector” in Gaza. And with 12,000 employees, she said it will be nearly impossible for the international community to duplicate the agency's network of services.

“If you squeeze UNRWA out, what other agency can fill that void?” she said on the sidelines of the Doha Forum in Qatar.

The U.S., formerly the largest donor to UNRWA, halted funding to the agency in early 2024. On Friday, the U.N. General Assembly renewed UNRWA’s mandate through 2029. But Alrifai said the cash crisis continues.

“Votes are great. Cash is better,” Alrifai said.

The war erupted on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants entered Israel, killing some 1,200 people and taking over 250 people hostage. Israel responded with an offensive that has killed over 70,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.

The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants, but says that nearly half the dead have been women and children. The ministry is part of Gaza's Hamas government and its numbers are considered reliable by the U.N. and other international bodies.

Israel accuses Hamas of using civilians as human shields.

Find more of AP’s Israel-Hamas coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

Tents sheltering displaced Palestinians stand amid the destruction left by the Israeli air and ground offensive in Gaza City Friday, Dec. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)