CHARLOTTE, N.C. — With the Carolina Panthers trading away Christian McCaffrey, starting a third-string quarterback, holding a 1-12 record in their last 13 games, and facing a Tom Brady-led Buccaneers team poised to get things going in the right direction, there is almost no reason that the Panthers should have come away with a win on Sunday.
But they did.
The NFL's parity was in full swing on Sunday at Bank of America Stadium as the Panthers earned their second win of the season over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
How did it happen? Carolina's offense was mistake-free while Tampa's was erratic and could not put together any kind of meaningful production.
The game's first half saw no scoring until the Panthers broke through in the final minute with a PJ Walker 20-yard touchdown pass to DJ Moore.
That proved all the Panthers needed as the Buccaneers were only able to get a field goal in the second half. Meanwhile, the Panthers added a rushing touchdown from Chuba Hubbard and a receiving touchdown from Tommy Tremble.
PJ Walker finished 16 of 22 with 177 yards passing with two touchdowns to put together one of the most solid performances by a Carolina quarterback this season.
D'Onta Foreman rushed for 118 yards in place of McCaffrey, who was traded on Thursday to the San Francisco 49ers. Foreman's 118 yards are the most by a Panthers player in a game since Week 9 of the 2019 NFL season.
The Buccaneers, meanwhile, were stifled all day. Tom Brady finished the day with 290 yards with a 65 percent completion percentage but was unable to connect with his receivers on crucial third and fourth down plays. On the ground, the Buccaneers only picked up 46 yards.
With the win, the Panthers now sit just a game behind the Buccaneers (3-4) and Atlanta Falcons (3-4) in the NFC South standings.
Next week, the Panthers play the Falcons in Atlanta on Sunday at 1 p.m.
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