Saints-Buccaneers inactives: Ronald Jones in, Taysom Hill, Latavius Murray out

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will be entering the game healthy. The New Orleans Saints will not. 

Health in the postseason matters more than some would care to admit. For older quarterbacks, this could be the difference between a team going home with a win or just straight going home.

For what could be the final time, Tom Brady and Drew Brees will meet on the gridiron. The New Orleans Saints have home-field advantage over their NFC South rival the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but Brady might have the secret weapon to help him win:

Health.

Buccaneers running back Ronald Jones (quad/finger) is active for Sunday night’s game against the Saints. The third-year runner was considered a game-time decision but is expected to join his teammates. On the flip side, both Saints running back Latavius Murray (quad) and quarterback Taysom Hill (knee) will not be cleared to play.

The winner of Sunday’s matchup will be set to face the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship at Lambeau Field next weekend.

How will this affect New Orleans’ game plan?

This is the second game Murray has missed this season, as he was relegated to the reserve/COVID-19 list for the Saints’ regular-season finale against the Carolina Panthers due to Alvin Kamara testing positive.

The real loss will be Hill, who plays such an essential role for the Saints’ overall offensive approach. By now, the legend of the man without a position has taken the NFL by storm. This marks the first time since his arrival in the NFL that Hill has missed due to injury.

Jones, who missed the team’s victory over the Washington Football Team in the Wild Card Round, is expected to have a limited role. Last week, the team relied heavily on Leonard Fournette to carry the load, watching him finish with 93 yards and a touchdown.

For the season, Jones has tallied 978 rushing yards on 192 attempts and scored nine total touchdowns.

https://twitter.com/Buccaneers/status/1350850375881019395

In a game that could be won by who has better weapons, Brees is down a few. This might be the end of an era before it even begins.