NEW ORLEANS>> To Baker Mayfield, the way the Tampa Bay Buccaneers weathered a wild second quarter in which they lost a 17-point lead was symbolic of their mindset ever since they traveled to New Orleans on Tuesday to escape the path of Hurricane Milton.

Mayfield overcame three turnovers with 325 yards and four touchdowns passing, and the Buccaneers defeated the New Orleans Saints 51-27 on Sunday in what they hoped would be a boost to their many fans who endured Milton’s widespread damage earlier in the week.

“The last few weeks have been tough for the Tampa area and all of South Florida,” Mayfield said. “Today was a team embracing everything that everybody was going through, ups and downs and handling it the best way you can, fighting through it and trying to make it work.

“That’s life,” Mayfield added. “Obviously a natural disaster is not easy to deal with, but you find a way to overcome.”

For the Saints, the result blemished rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler’s first NFL start, and extended New Orleans’ losing streak to four after it opened the season with two lopsided victories.

But with first-string quarterback Derek Carr’s timeline to return from an oblique injury uncertain, Saints coach Dennis Allen said his intention was to start Rattler again Thursday night, when the Saints try to end their skid against Denver.

“There were some encouraging things, some things that he’s going to learn from,” Allen said, noting that New Orleans’ difficulty running the ball and defensive lapses in the second half made Rattler’s job harder as the game wore on. “I don’t think we did enough around him to help him.”

Trailing 27-24 at halftime, the Bucs (4-2) pulled ahead for good on Chris Godwin’s second touchdown of the game — a 55-yarder on a short catch and long run during which three Saints missed tackle attempts.