It's the first of three consecutive NFC South games for the Bucs, who currently hold the No. 2 seed in the NFC with an 8-3 record.

First on the hit list is Brees, who beat the Bucs 24-20 in the regular-season opener by connecting on three long pass plays. That was it. But it was enough.

So much of the Bucs' success depends on their defense, and this game is no exception. But it's the Bucs offense that has started to click under quarterback Jeff Garcia lately.

Garcia, 39, was benched after the season opener and demoted to the inactive third quarterback. But in the past six games after replacing injured QB Brian Griese, Garcia has caught fire, completing over 70 percent of his passes with five touchdowns and one interception.

Now Garcia has a chance to become the first quarterback to ever lead an NFC South team to consecutive titles.

"I don't think it's wrong to look at what we have in front of us these next three weeks," Garcia said. "Just as long as we know where our focus has to be and that's this week, this game. But we have three division opponents and everybody is pretty tight. Any one of the four teams is capable of winning this division, depending upon the streak that they go on. So, it's important for us to realize what we have ahead of us and the great opportunity that we have ahead of us if we are able to take on the challenge and turn it into a positive thing for us."

Garcia says he tries to be the best quarterback on the field every Sunday, but he'll have a tough time upstaging Brees, the NFL's passing yardage leader.

"Obviously, Drew is having a record-setting year," Garcia said. "He's playing outstanding football. His offense is playing great. His coach does a great job of calling the game and they execute it well. There's no question that he's having a tremendous year. That's the task our defense has to face. My task is their defense and trying to overcome what they're going to present to me. If I can do my best job of doing that and put ourselves in positions to have successful plays and winning plays, I can't be too concerned about what he's doing on the field. Obviously, we need to outscore them in some way or another. It's going to be a task in itself, but I think this team is up to the challenge that we have this weekend. It's going to be a great game and it's going to be a physical game, so we're excited about that."

Bucs coach Jon Gruden marvels at all the weapons Brees has at his disposal.

"They're going to throw the ball," Gruden said. "They're throwing it more than anybody in the league, now. They'll call a running play and have the receiver run a built-in sight adjustment on the back side. If it's there he'll bag the handoff and fire it across the formation to a wideout. They're looking to throw it and rightfully so. This guy's superb. He's really outstanding at what he does. What can I say? Deuce McAllister is a heck of a back and if Reggie (Bush) plays and the rest, (Pierre) Thomas, these guys are good runners."

The Saints are not out of it, not by a long shot. But a stat to remember is that NFC South teams are a combined 21-2 at home this season and the Bucs are undefeated after five games at Raymond James Stadium.

"You know with that team, regardless of where they are in the playoff chase, they're always going to give their best fight," said Bucs center Jeff Faine, who played two seasons with the Saints before signing with Tampa Bay as a free agent. "The only time we ever didn't do it when I was there was when we already had it locked up when we didn't play. It's going to be a great challenge for us this week coming up. It's a very capable team of beating us. They have every tool that they need, an unbelievable offense, and our offense is definitely going to have to match with them and put some points on the board and take advantage of opportunities."

SERIES HISTORY: 34th regular season meeting. The Saints lead the series 20-13, but the Bucs have won six of the past 10 games. As NFC South rivals, the Saints hold a 7-6 edge. New Orleans won the first meeting, 24-20, in the Superdome this season on the opening week.