http://www.authenticstampabaybuccaneers ... aul-jersey , it was a tale of two halves for the Bucs. They lost another tough on the road this week, this time to the Carolina Panthers. Tampa Bay is now 3-5 on the season with a (1-2) record in division play and a (2-3) record in conference play. The defense couldn’t stop anyone in the first half and left the offense in a giant hole before finally putting together a respectable second half. But by then it was too little, too late. A play fake on first down saw Ryan Fitzpatrick attempting a deep pass to Mike Evans on the left sideline. Great defense by James Bradberry denied Evans the reception, which led to a three-and-out on the first offensive drive of the game.Just like last week against the Bengals, the Bucs held Carolina to a three-and-out on their first possession. Great coverage from the secondary forced Newton to go down just two yards shy of the first down. Tampa Bay fans everywhere threw up in their mouths a bit on the next drive as they watched a Fitzpatrick pass inaccurately sail over Evans’ head and land comfortably in the chest of Panthers’ safety Eric Reid. Reid took the ball all the way down to the Bucs’ 10-yard line. The 39-yard return had the Panthers in business.The Bucs’ defense made a great stop on Newton on a first-down option run, but a dumb unnecessary roughness penalty by Devonte Bond gave the Panthers a fresh new set of downs and the ball at the 4. A couple of plays later, Alex Armah punched it in from a yard out to give the Panthers the first touchdown of the game, 7-0. Tampa Bay found themselves in trouble again early after an illegal shift penalty put them in a 3rd-and-10 at their own 20. A great move by Jacquizz Rodgers on Luke Kuechly (I know, right?) allowed Rodgers to get the first down on a big run. But Fitzpatrick almost made his second big mistake of the game after Bradberry almost jumped a slant pass to Evans. The ball fell lifelessly to the ground and it was time for another punt. The Panthers began the next drive at their own 12, but that didn’t mean much. Back-to-back 32 yard plays had them inside the Bucs’ 10-yard line within moments. Carlton Davis looked like a rookie on both plays, getting hurdled by Christian McCafferey and then whiffing on D.J. Moore as he raced down the sideline off an end-around. McCafferey finished off the drive with a three yard touchdown and the Panthers now led, 14-0. Tampa Bay’s first three plays on the next drive resulted in 35 yards and three first downs. A roughing the passer call on defensive tackle Vernon Bulter gave the Bucs 15 more yards as they drove closer toward the end zone. Fitzpatrick found Adam Humphries on 3rd-and-2 for a six yard gain and then found O.J. Howard in the flat - with a guy in his face - for the Bucs’ first touchdown of the game. Chandler Catanzaro hit the extra point and Carolina’s lead was reduced, 14-7.Any momentum the Bucs built up was just wiped from the face of the earth, however, as Curtis Samuel ran through the entire defense off a double reverse en route to a 33-yard touchdown run. It was absolutely insane. Just check out the video below. Tampa Bay needed an answer, but they couldn’t provide one on the next drive. Pressure up the middle forced Fitzpatrick to scramble out of the pocket into the waiting arms of Mario Addison. Two plays later, Donte Jackson came off the edge on a corner blitz and the end result was another Addison sack that forced another Buccaneers punt. Jordan Whitehead missed a major opportunity to force McCafferey out of bounds on a first down run and the result was another 30+ yard run that put the Panthers in a goal-to-go situation. The Bucs attempted to challenge due to the fact that it looked like McCafferey stepped out of bounds on his own, but the ruling was upheld. Carolina was forced into a 3rd-and-goal from inside the one and a great second effort from McCafferey pushed the lead all the way to 28-7.The last thing Tampa Bay needed on their next drive was a three-and-out, but that’s exactly what they got as Evans dropped a pass on the sideline that would’ve resulted in a first down.The Panthers could smell the desperation and it proved to be quite pungent.
