Rookie QB Tyler Shough's 2 TD runs lead Saints to a 24-20 upset of Buccaneers

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Tyler Shough has faced the two top teams in the NFC South and beat them both on the road.

The New Orleans Saints are more competitive than their record indicates.

Shough ran for two touchdowns and the Saints upset the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 24-20 on Sunday to tighten the division race. The rookie quarterback is 2-3 as a starter, with the other victory coming at Carolina.

“We can beat anybody. When we’re stalling out, we’re beating ourselves,” Shough said. “Knowing how close we have been in some of those losses, how you can flip it on its head and we produce those big plays, we’d get those wins.”

The lowly Saints (3-10), who were 8 1/2-point underdogs, frustrated Baker Mayfield and the Buccaneers (7-6) in a sloppy game mostly played through a driving storm.

The four-time defending division champion Bucs lost for the fourth time in five games and fell into a first-place tie with Carolina. The Bucs and Panthers face off twice in the final three games.

“It doesn't matter whether the team was 12-0 or 0-12, it's the NFL. You have to show up and make plays or the other team is gonna beat you,” Bucs coach Todd Bowles said.

After Chris Godwin Jr. couldn’t hold onto Mayfield’s pass on fourth-and-2 from the Saints 47, New Orleans drove for the go-ahead score.

Shough spun away from Logan Hall and Vita Vea in the backfield and scrambled 13 yards for a touchdown and a 24-17 lead near the midpoint of the fourth quarter.

The Buccaneers had a chance to tie it but Emeka Egbuka dropped Mayfield’s pass in the end zone, and they settled for a 37-yard field goal by Chase McLaughlin that cut the deficit to 24-20 with under five minutes remaining.

The Bucs had another chance in the final two minutes but Mayfield ran out of his early-season magic.

First, Deion Jones dropped a potential interception that would’ve set Tampa Bay up near its own 40. Instead, the Bucs got the ball after a punt at their 20 with 1:48 remaining and no timeouts.

Mayfield threw two incomplete passes, ran for 6 yards and threw a 3-yard pass to Cade Otton on fourth-and-4.

“I don’t disagree that it feels disjointed,” Godwin said of Tampa Bay's offense. “I can’t put my finger on exactly why. I feel like if we could, it would probably be easier to fix it. You can’t just look at this and go, ‘Oh, it’s whatever.’ It’s not whatever, we have to correct it. If we want to make a run at this thing, we’ve got to get it together and get it together fast.”

Shough finished with 144 yards passing and 55 rushing with one pick.

“Our guys have a lot of adversity this year and they’ve grown through this journey,” Saints coach Kellen Moore said.

Mayfield had 122 yards passing on a 14-of-30 afternoon with one interception.

Shough’s 34-yard TD run on the opening drive of the second half was his career score on the ground. It gave New Orleans a 14-10 lead.

Helped by a 29-yard pass-interference penalty on Jonas Sanker that wiped out an incomplete pass to Tez Johnson on third-and-10, the Buccaneers reclaimed the lead a few plays later.

Rachaad White ran 11, 7 and 5 yards. Then Sean Tucker ran for 13 yards and scored from the 1 to make it 17-14.

The Saints answered with a 30-yard field goal by Charlie Smyth that tied it at 17-all. Shough completed a pass on fourth-and-1 to the Buccaneers 5, but a penalty for illegal man downfield forced the Saints to settle for a field goal.

A 54-yard kickoff return by Mason Tipton to open the game set the Saints up at the Buccaneers 45. Devin Neal capped a quick drive with a 3-yard TD run for a 7-0 lead.

The Saints had just one touchdown in the first quarter this season before that score.

The Bucs went for a fourth-and-1 at the Saints 45 late in the first quarter but Carl Granderson stopped Bucky Irving for a 7-yard loss on a deep pitch.

Sean Tucker was stuffed on a fourth-and-1 at the Saints 49 late in the second quarter.

On the ensuing possession, New Orleans went for fourth-and-1 at the Buccaneers 42 and Neal was dropped for a 3-yard loss by Haason Reddick.

The Bucs finally converted on fourth-and-1 when Mayfield ran for 4 yards on the last drive of the first half, which ended with no points.

Undrafted rookie Benjamin Chukwama made his first NFL start for the Buccaneers, filling in for All-Pro left tackle Tristan Wirfs.

Saints: RB Alvin Kamara (knee, ankle), T Taliese Fuaga (ankle), S Justin Reid (knee) were inactive.

Buccaneers: LG Ben Bredeson left in the second quarter with a knee injury. ... DB Tykee Smith exited late in the first half with a stinger. ... Reddick left with an ankle injury. ... Wirfs (oblique), WR Mike Evans (clavicle), RG Luke Haggard (shoulder) and CB Benjamin Morrison (hamstring) were inactive.

Saints: Host Carolina next Sunday.

Buccaneers: Host Atlanta on Thursday night.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) is sacked by Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive tackle Greg Gaines and linebacker Haason Reddick, left, in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) passes under pressure from New Orleans Saints defensive tackle Bryan Bresee (90) in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken)

Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Christian Izien (29) celebrates after stopping the New Orleans Saints on fourth down in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken)

New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) is sacked by Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Chris Braswell (43) in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) carries for a touchdown against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving (7) carries against the New Orleans Saints in the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken)

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) appeals to down judge Andy Warner (64) for a pass interference call in the second half of an NFL football game against the New Orleans Saints, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken)

Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving (7) carries against New Orleans Saints safety Jordan Howden (31) in the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken)

New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) carries for a touchdown past Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Rashad Wisdom (38) in the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

The U.S. Department of Transportation is waiving part of a fine assessed against Southwest Airlines after the company canceled thousands of flights during a winter storm in 2022.

Under a 2023 settlement reached by the Biden administration, Southwest agreed to a $140 million civil penalty. The government said at the time that the penalty was the largest it had ever imposed on an airline for violating consumer protection laws.

Most of the money went toward compensation for travelers. But Southwest agreed to pay $35 million to the U.S. Treasury. Southwest made a $12 million payment in 2024 and a second $12 million payment earlier this year. But the Transportation Department issued an order Friday waiving the final $11 million payment, which was due Jan. 31, 2026.

The department said Southwest should get credit for significantly improving its on-time performance and investing in network operations.

“DOT believes that this approach is in the public interest as it incentivizes airlines to invest in improving their operations and resiliency, which benefits consumers directly,” the department said in a statement. “This credit structure allows for the benefits of the airline’s investment to be realized by the public, rather than resulting in a government monetary penalty.”

The fine stemmed from a winter storm in December 2022 that paralyzed Southwest's operations in Denver and Chicago and then snowballed when a crew-rescheduling system couldn’t keep up with the chaos. Ultimately the airline canceled 17,000 flights and stranded more than 2 million travelers.

The Biden administration determined that Southwest had violated the law by failing to help customers who were stranded in airports and hotels, leaving many of them to scramble for other flights. Many who called the airline’s overwhelmed customer service center got busy signals or were stuck on hold for hours.

Even before the settlement, the nation’s fourth-biggest airline by revenue said the meltdown cost it more than $1.1 billion in refunds and reimbursements, extra costs and lost ticket sales over several months.

In a statement, Southwest said it was grateful to the Department of Transportation and Secretary Sean Duffy for recognizing the investments it has made to modernize its operations.

“During the last two years, Southwest successfully completed an operational turnaround that directly benefits our customers with industry leading on-time performance and percentage of completed flights without cancellations,” the company said.

FILE - A Southwest Airlines jet pulls into a gate at Dallas Love Field Airport Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025, in Dallas. (AP Photo/LM Otero, File)