Bucs gets a win over the Panthers and wait to see if the Saints can upset the Falcons to claim the NFC South division

With a chance to get to the playoffs, the Bucs would need to beat the Panthers and have a little help from the Saints in hopes that they defeat Atlanta, since the Falcons defeated the Rams earlier this week. Not only the playoffs ere on the line but there has been speculation that Todd Bowles may be let go, There were s so much riding on this game so let's take you inside.

On the Bucs' opening drive, Baker Mayfield and crew struck gold first as he marched his team down the field and hit Cade Otton for an 18-yard td. After that touchdown, which was five minutes after, the rain started to come down, which was a factor for both teams. You saw a lot of players slipping on the turf as they attempted to make their cuts. Everything looked like it was going Tampa's way. Thry tacked on a field goal and was driving for more points early in the second quarter, but Mayfield got a little impatient. On a second and long, Mayfield threw his first pick of the night, which set the Panthers in good field position to score potential points. Three plays later, the Bucs' allowed Tommy Tremble to run free for a seven-yard TD.

As stated, before the weather was a huge factor because on the ensuing kick return, the Bucs fumbled the ball but recovered. If you were a Buc's fan, you were relieved that the Bucs recovered the fumble. Despite the miscues, the Bucs finished the half strong. They forced Bryce Young to throw a pick and set the Bucs in position for points, The Bucs went into halftime, nailing a field goal to extend their lead 13-7.

Coming out of the half, Todd Bowles wanted his team to finish what they started. "We have 30 minutes to finish the game." We need to finish the game."

For the most part, Tampa Bay shut down the Panther's offense. By the end of the third quarter, they did not allow Young to convert a third down and held the Panthers to 136 yards of total yards. The Bucs tacked on another field goal to extend the lead.

The Bucs' defense came up huge when it looked like the Panthers were threatening to score. Tampa recovered a fumble and basically bled out the clock to upset the Panthers' celebration of winning the division, 16-14. Mayfield finished the game 16 out of 22 for 203 yards, 1 td, and 1 pick. Bucky Irving had 26 touches for 94 yards a 1 td.