For a Bucs team aspiring to clinch the NFC South and stamp their ticket to the playoffs, Sunday was not the kind of performance they wanted to have against the Saints at all. Throughout the game, it was a struggle on both sides of the ball.

This week’s Most Impressive list was a lot harder to write than in previous weeks, but despite Tampa Bay not finishing the year on a high note and losing 23-13, here are the few things that went well in Week 17.

CB Zyon McCollum

Bucs CB Zyon McCollum – Photo by: USA Today

Much of the Saints’ offensive production was from the tight end position, mainly Juwan Johnson. Derek Carr opted to target his group of tight ends over Chris Olave (three catches for 26 yards on six targets) and Rashid Shaheed (two catches for 14 yards on three targets). Some of that is a credit to the Bucs’ cornerbacks, but here I want to highlight Zyon McCollum.

McCollum had a career-high seven tackles, and he was the brightest spot in the secondary. He spent much of the game on Olave and held his own by maintaining tight coverage throughout.

WR Trey Palmer

Yes, one play gets him on the list. But on a day where positive plays were few and far between, Palmer’s fourth-quarter touchdown grab deserves mentioning on this list. It got Tampa Bay on the scoreboard, and while it was not enough to mount a comeback, the rookie made a nice, contested grab. That’s something, right?

He had a chance at a lot more late in the game, but after he caught a deep ball from Baker Mayfield, he fumbled it and gave the ball back to the Saints. Big plays for the Bucs were just not meant to be in this one…

WRs Chris Godwin and Mike Evans – When They Were Involved

Bucs WRs Trey Palmer, Chris Godwin and Mike Evans – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

The Bucs’ offense got going a little too late, but the biggest play of the day happened inside the two-minute warning when Chris Godwin hauled in a 47-yard touchdown from Baker Mayfield. As was the case with Godwin and Mike Evans, when they got the ball, good things happened and each provided much of the life for the Bucs’ offense.

The offensive game plan did not call for their names much, but when they were targets, both came up with a couple of chunk plays.

Bucs Rookie OLBs

With Shaq Barrett out, some of the young guys had to step up for the Bucs at outside linebacker. YaYa Diaby continued his strong play on Sunday and was one of the few players who showed up. In the first half, he notched his 10th tackle for a loss of the season, tying teammate Calijah Kancey for the most among rookies.

But it was another Jason Licht find who made his first big play in the NFL.

On a 3rd & 9 in the second quarter, Derek Carr was being chased to the sideline by Markees Watts. Carr ran out of bounds for a loss of six yards, and with Watts the closest defender to him, he was credited with his first NFL sack. The undrafted rookie has flashed in some samples as a pass rusher, and his efforts finally paid off in the stat column.

Saints RB Alvin Kamara and Bucs DT Greg Gaines and ILB Lavonte David – Photo by: USA Today

ILB Lavonte David

It was not a good day on defense for many Bucs, but Lavonte David showed up and recorded 11 tackles. Long known for being a screen-sniffer, David showcased his still-elite pursuit ability by tackling Chris Olave on a third-down screen pass early on to get a stop for Tampa Bay.

RB Chase Edmonds

The Bucs running backs did not do much, but Chase Edmonds had a solid game as the change-of-pace back. Edmonds finished with three carries for 16 yards and had five catches for 40 yards. He filled his role as well as could be expected.