The Bucs Defense Has Allowed Only One Touchdown in 8 Quarters

A subpar Thursday Night Football showdown between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Carolina Panthers turned out to be a wild and crazy affair as the Bucs held on for a 20-14 win.

Carolina challenged a non-pass interference call, was gifted a first down spot before the two-minute warning, and the Panthers still had an opportunity to steal a victory from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with 1:28 to play. On 4th-and-1 from the Buccaneers’ three-yard line, Panthers star running back Christian McCaffrey took a direct snap and ran to his left, but was pushed out of bounds and stopped a yard short of the first-down marker by Vernon Hargreaves. The defining play capped off a strong performance by a revamped Tampa Bay defense as Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians also earned his first win with the franchise.

Observations from the Buccaneers’ 20-14 win over the Panthers on Thursday Night Football:

As it turns out, Jameis Winston can win on the road. Coming into Thursday night, he had lost 12 straight starts on the road. His last win was in San Diego against the Chargers on Dec. 4, 2016. In that span, his 4.7 percent touchdown rate was in line with his career rate (4.5), but his 4.2 percent interception rate was higher (3.1). The defense also was to blame, though. The Bucs allowed nearly 30 points per game. Against the Panthers, they allowed 14, but the defense really allowed only 12. Carolina kicked four field goals and tackled Peyton Barber in the end zone for a safety.

Before the game, ESPN’s Ed Werder said that Bruce Arians’ advice to Winston was “just keep slinging it.” Good call, coach. Winston bounced back from a career-worst performance, completing 16 of 25 passes for 208 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions. His passer rating was 103.4, more than double what it was against the 49ers in Week 1. Will his success carry over to next week? Well …

Winston completed his first deep ball of the season with about three minutes left in the first half. Mike Evans hauled in the pass, a 41-yard gain. Four plays later, he completed another one, this time to Chris Godwin for a 20-yard touchdown. Evans caught a team-high 43.8 percent of his deep targets last season; Godwin caught 25.0 percent. Winston did not complete a deep pass during the preseason or in Week 1 (0-for-7).

Evans is the Bucs’ best receiver, but is Godwin becoming the most reliable? In addition to his second-quarter touchdown, Godwin caught a couple of off-target passes, including a 22-yarder in the first quarter that set up a field goal. Plus, he caught a 14-yard pass on a critical third and 8 in the fourth quarter. That catch also set up a field goal. Godwin finished with eight catches for 121 yards, the fourth time in his past 10 games that he has gained at least 100 yards.

Early nomination for bargain of the offseason: linebacker Shaquil Barrett. Vernon Hargreaves deserves credit for his touchdown-saving tackle of Christian McCaffrey to end the game, but Barrett, whom the Bucs signed to a one-year deal worth up to $5 million, deserves the game ball. He not only recorded three sacks but also pressured Cam Newton on a second-and-10 pass during the Panthers’ final drive. If he doesn’t hurry Newton, that would have been a touchdown pass to DJ Moore. Barrett also had a sack in Week 1 vs. the 49ers. His career high is 5½ sacks, which he set in 2015.

There was a lot of chatter before the game about the health of Newton’s shoulder. In Week 1, he threw only one pass at least 20 yards down the field, and last season had the second-lowest deep pass rate (8.5 percent) among 35 qualifying quarterbacks, according to Pro Football Focus. The Panthers didn’t take long to put those doubts to rest. On Newton’s first pass after the weather delay, he targeted Curtis Samuel along the left sideline. Samuel made the catch and picked up 44 yards.

The Panthers gave the Bucs defense a heavy dose of McCaffrey on their opening possession. The running back gained 22 yards on his first five touches (16 yards on four carries and 6 yards on one catch). Tampa Bay bottled him up afterward, holding him to 37 yards on his final 13 touches. The Bucs limited the Panthers to 39 rushing yards, the fewest they’ve allowed since Sept. 17, 2017, when the Bears gained 20.

The Bucs, however, struggled to contain tight end Greg Olsen. Olsen gained more than 100 receiving yards for the 11th time in his career and the third time against Tampa Bay.

The Panthers were moving the ball well on their first drive until the Bucs defense came up with a huge stop on a fourth-and-1 run near midfield. The offense turned the favorable field position into three points. Tampa Bay prevented conversions on two more fourth-and-1 situations, including on Carolina’s final offensive play of the day. The Panthers’ play calls were suspect; they never tried a quarterback sneak with Newton. The Bucs allowed conversions on 4 of 6 fourth-and-1 attempts last season.

First mention of Gerald McCoy? Two and a half minutes into the second quarter, when the Panthers defensive tackle shed O.J. Howard’s block and tackled running back Ronald Jones for a 2-yard loss. McCoy also committed a personal foul during the third quarter. Four plays later, Barber ran up the middle for a 16-yard touchdown that gave the Bucs a 17-12 lead.

No breakout for Jones. Barber gained 82 yards on 23 carriers. Jones gained 9 yards on four carriers. Because he’s a nonfactor in the passing game, Jones’ upside remains limited.

Panthers kicker Joey Slye converted all four of field goals, including a 54-yarder at the end of the first half. Bucs kicker Matt Gay made his first but missed his second, a kick that would have given Tampa Bay a 20-12 lead. Slye was an undrafted free agent; Gay was a fifth-round pick.

Touchdowns matter; kickers not so much. The Bucs scored touchdowns. The Panthers didn’t. The Bucs missed a field goal. The Panthers didn’t. The Bucs won. The Panthers didn’t.