Know your opponent: How Carolina Panthers match up with Tampa Bay Bucs in season finale
The NFC South title comes down to the final week, and the Carolina Panthers have a say in who will be the divisional champion.
It just won’t be them.
The Panthers (2-14) will take the Bank of America Stadium turf at 1 p.m. Sunday for the final time this doomed season when they take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers — the 8-8 team that, with a win, will clinch its fourth playoff appearance in as many years.
The Bucs opened as 5.5-point favorites, according to FanDuel Sportsbook, with the over/under set at 37.5.
Here’s a quick look at the Buccaneers and how they match up with the Panthers.
Tampa Bay offense: Charlotte sees Baker Mayfield again
It’s true that the Panthers have been dwelling near rock bottom for most of this season, hitting new lows with every dismal offensive performance and every coaching change and every viral front office outburst.
Sunday presents another opportunity to sink deeper into the malaise.
Baker Mayfield, the former Heisman Trophy winner who was traded to Carolina ahead of the 2022 season only to be released by December, will make his first return to Bank of America Stadium since his maligned stint with the Panthers ended. And he’ll be doing so with a playoff berth on the line.
Mayfield has had one of the best seasons of his career. It’s been stellar at times; at others, uninspiring. But Mayfield’s performance seems to be trending up: The past three games, Mayfield has averaged 324.3 yards and 2.6 touchdown passes a game. One of those games featured a perfect quarterback rating of 158.3 against the Green Bay Packers.
On the year, the Bucs average 21.2 points (19th in the NFL) and 318.3 yards (23rd) on offense, and have the second-highest fourth-down conversion percentage in the league. They struggle on the ground as a team — they’re last in yards per carry (3.4) and second to last in rush yards per game average (87.3) — but still have top running back Rachaad White 85 rushing yards away from a 1,000-yard season. Their top targets in the pass game: Mike Evans (the Panther killer, who has 1,233 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns on the year) and Chris Godwin (973 yards and two touchdowns, including one last week).
Tampa Bay defense: Can Bryce Young end rough rookie season on high note?
Rookie quarterback Bryce Young struggled this past weekend against the Jacksonville Jaguars. He passed for barely over 100 yards and couldn’t lead his team to any points — recording the Panthers’ first shutout loss in over two decades.
And on paper, it seems like Young might have a tough challenge ahead.
Without addressing the questions that could make Young’s season finale trickier — among them whether kicker Eddy Pineiro will be good to go — it’s clear the Bucs have a pretty solid defense.
The Bucs boast one of the best rushing defenses in the league. Some stats: opponent rushing yards per game (93.1, sixth in the NFL) and opponent rushing touchdowns per game (0.7, ninth). This isn’t a positive for the Panthers, who’ve seen success with their run-first mentality. (They have suffered dire consequences when they haven’t been able to establish the run, too. Take the shutout against the Jaguars this past weekend.)
The good news? The last time the Panthers played the Bucs was the coming-out party for Chuba Hubbard, who finished that game with 104 yards and two touchdowns.
Tampa Bay doesn’t have as lauded a passing defense. The Bucs allow 260.3 passing yards a game — worst in the league. What they do well, though, is get to the quarterback. The Bucs, led by linebacker Yaya Diaby (6.5 sacks) and defensive tackle Vita Vea (5.5), have sacked the quarterback 45 times, and did so four times against the Panthers earlier this season to add to Young’s 178-yard, one-interception day.
The Bucs also average a +0.4 turnover margin — something they’ll look to replicate to win their way into the playoffs.
