That is, they likely will have to win all four remaining games just to stay in playoff contention based on the way the NFC playoff picture is developing. Even a 4-0 run and a 10-6 finish to the regular season might not be enough to get them into the postseason.

The Saints (6-6) are last in the NFC South and will host the Atlanta Falcons (8-4) on Sunday at noon at the Superdome. The Falcons are No. 6 in the NFC playoff standings after beating San Diego 22-16 at Qualcomm Stadium this past Sunday.

"I think this is a year where I don't think you're going to see any nine-win teams in the NFC, aside from a division winner, in the postseason," Saints Coach Sean Payton said Monday, less than 24 hours after his team lost to the Buccaneers 23-20. "You could very well see a 10-win team left home.

"We have four weeks left . . . two home games left . . . and (we) certainly understand how everyone else is playing ahead of us, and that makes it much more challenging. We're never going to stop playing hard or not trying. I think we have good character in the locker room. We're going to have to play better. I think that's where it's at."

The Saints' playoff chances perhaps hinge on the wing of quarterback Drew Brees and the collective prayers of the Who Dat Nation, much like Sunday at rain-drenched Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla., where the Buccaneers stayed in the driver's seat in the NFC South at 9-3.

The Buccaneers intercepted three passes (a fourth was nullified by a penalty) by Brees and limited the Saints to 44 yards rushing, just two more than Tampa Bay quarterback Jeff Garcia collected on seven scrambles.

Brees threw 47 times in the sloppy conditions, completing 25 for 296 yards and two touchdowns for his lowest passer rating (60.2) of the season.

The Saints' final two possessions ended on interceptions, with the last one coming when cornerback Phillip Buchanon stepped in front of intended receiver Lance Moore at New Orleans' 40-yard line with 1:36 remaining.

Afterward, Brees shouldered the blame for failing to capitalize on several scoring opportunities. But there was plenty of blame to go around.

Two costly mistakes came in the third quarter, resulting in one Tampa Bay touchdown and thwarting a Saints' scoring opportunity.

On Garcia's 39-yard scoring strike to a wide-open Antonio Bryant, cornerback Jason David and safety Josh Bullocks didn't do their jobs in four-deep zone coverage.

"If they execute the coverage, at worst it's an incompletion," Saints defensive coordinator Gary Gibbs said. "It's certainly not a wide-open touchdown."

On the ensuing drive, Saints tight ends Jeremy Shockey and Buck Ortega failed to get the proper spacing on their vertical pass routes, enabling cornerback Ronde Barber to deflect a pass to teammate Cato June for an interception in the end zone.

Each blown assignment played a factor in the loss but didn't explain the discrepancy in the number of pass plays (47) to running plays (18). Running backs Reggie Bush, Pierre Thomas and Deuce McAllister combined on 17 carries for 47 yards. Wide receiver Devery Henderson was dropped for a 3-yard loss on an end around on fourth-and-1 at the Buccaneers' 30 in the first quarter.

"I was frustrated a little bit early with some of the minus plays that we took in the run game," Payton said. "At times this season when we've been able to effectively run the Football, it's led to us winning Football games, and when we haven't, it's led to us not winning Football games.

"We want to have balance. We're not taking the approach of just not running the Football, but we have to do a better job of avoiding the minus plays and be more consistent when we do run it."

Several players said they understand their weekly game plan revolves around Brees, but they would like the running game to become a bigger focal point of the offense.

"That's an area where we have to do a better job," right tackle Jon Stinchcomb said. "I understand where our bread and butter is, that's the passing game. But we have to find a way to incorporate a run game that defenses respect."

Bush said he was "surprised" by the number of pass plays called considering that the muddy and slippery conditions best suited the running game.

"But we just run the plays that are called," Bush said. "I can't really dictate what should be called or what we should do. All we can do is run what's called.

"It's not the fact that we can't run the ball. We have the guys here. But, at the end of the day, coaches are going to call what they want to call. We just got to make it happen. The coaches aren't on the field. We got to make the plays."

INJURY REPORT: Safety Kevin Kaesviharn is expected to miss one to two games after suffering a shoulder injury against the Buccaneers.

No other game-related injuries were reported.

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Brian Allee-Walsh may be reached at ballee-walsh@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3805.