The NFL's schedule-makers were either prescient or lucky when they dropped their 2025 slate in May, at least when it comes to the NFC South. The league decided to pit Tampa Bay and Carolina against each other in Week 16 and Week 18, and lo and behold as we arrive at the first of those two games the Buccaneers and Panthers are tied for the division lead at 7-7 each. There are three weeks left to settle this thing, and barring an unlikely tie one of these two teams is going to be in the driver's seat after their December 21 contest at Bank of America Stadium.

The Buccaneers suffered a disappointing loss in Week 15, surrendering a two-touchdown lead in the fourth quarter to the Falcons in an eventual 29-28 decision. That briefly knocked them out of first place in the division, but the New Orleans Saints subsequently did something similar to the Panthers three days later and the tie in the standings was back in place. That means the Buccaneers' situation, goals and approach haven't changed.

"You take them a day at a time – you put your head down and you work," said Head Coach Todd Bowles. "We have an opportunity – we still have everything right in front of us. We've got to play a hell of a ball game. We got some things to clean up, but you know, it's about right where you need to be at this time with everybody fighting for a playoff spot. We're playing meaningful games in December and that's all you can ask for."

The Buccaneers are angling for their fifth straight division title, which would set an NFC South record, while the Panthers are trying to capture the crown for the first time since 2015. The Buccaneers looked like they might run away with the division when they rushed out to a 6-2 start, but the Panthers proved to be a team on the rise after their 5-12 finish in Dave Canales' first season as head coach.

"They're having a really great year, way better than last year," said wide receiver Mike Evans, who returned from injured reserve last week to ring up six catches for 132 yards. "We have to be the most physical team, number one, and then we have to be the smartest team. If we do those things, I think our offense can take advantage of some things we saw."

The Panthers have shown improvement on both sides of the ball but the defense is perhaps the more impressive turnaround story. Carolina spent in the offseason on such free agents as safety Tre'von Moehrig, defensive tackle Turk Wharton and linebacker Christian Rozeboom, and has benefited greatly from healthy seasons for defensive tackle Derrick Brown and cornerback Jaycee Horn. After ranking near the bottom of the NFL in a variety of defensive categories in 2024 – including the most points ever allowed in a single season – the Panthers have improved to middle-of-the-pack in most categories in 2025.

"The maturity [and] you can see the tweaks in the offensive system. They're doing a lot more now than they did a year ago just putting it in the first time. So, you can see the growth in the offense and the guys adjusting to the audibles and you can see the defense really coming around and they got some guys in the offseason, free agency and draft wise, that they really turned into a solid football team."

Carolina's run defense, in particular, is much more stout with Brown back in the mix after he missed all but one game last year. The Panthers were last in the league in that category in 2024, allowing 179.8 yards per game, but have shaved more than 60 yards per game off that total in 2025 and rank 17th in the NFL. Bowles thinks that part of the game will be extremely important on Sunday, along with the Bucs' 10th-ranked run defense against Carolina's ninth-ranked rushing attack.

"It's going to be critical on both sides of the ball," he said. "They've got a very huge offensive line. They do a great job running the football. I think they had like four games with over 175 yards rushing and they got more 100-yard rushing games after that. So, it's going to be critical."

The Buccaneers did have an advantage of a long weekend to rest and recuperate after their Thursday night loss. Quarterback Baker Mayfield said that and events on Sunday reenergized his squad for the three-week stretch run.

"Yeah, there's definitely an end-of-the-season push," said Mayfield. "Obviously, it helped with the Saints winning, but regardless, we still need to take care of business the last three games anyways. That's still the way we're looking at it, so yeah, there's new energy and guys are ready to go."

Added Evans: "We're all finally coming together. The whole team is trying to get back healthy. Like you said, we've been here before, so we know what it takes. [We have] to win. Don't change anything, don't do [anything] special, just do what we've been doing and try to win these ball games."

GAME AND BROADCAST DETAILS

Carolina Panthers (7-7) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-7)

Sunday, December 21, 1:00 p.m. ET

Bank of America Stadium (capacity: 73,778)

Charlotte, North Carolina

TV Broadcast Team: Chris Myers (play-by-play), Mark Schlereth (analyst), Jen Hale (reporter)

Radio: 98Rock (WXTB, 97.9 FM), Flagship Station

Radio Broadcast Team: Gene Deckerhoff (play-by-play), Dave Moore (analyst), T.J. Rives (reporter)

Spanish Radio: 96.1 Caliente

Spanish Radio Broadcast Team: Carlos Bohorquez (play-by-play), Martin Gramática (analyst), Santiago Gramática (reporter)

ALL-TIME HEAD-TO-HEAD SERIES

The Buccaneers head to Charlotte in Week 16 with a chance to tie up their all-time series with the Panthers. And if they were able to accomplish that in Week 16 they would then be in position to grab the lead in the series in the Week 18 rematch. The last time Tampa Bay was ahead of Carolina in the teams' shared history of games was at the end of the 2003 season, when it was up 4-3.

At the moment, the Panthers lead the all-time series with the Buccaneers, 25-24, but the Buccaneers have won nine of the last 10 meetings and 11 of the last 13. That includes consecutive season sweeps in 2020 and 2021, the first time the Bucs had managed that against Carolina since the NFC South was formed in 2002. They then duplicated that feat in 2023 and 2024.

The Buccaneers and Panthers also met three times before realignment put them in the same division, including a contest in Death Valley that the Bucs won, 20-13, in the Panthers' 1995 inaugural season.

Last season's sweep of the Panthers included two very different types of victory. The first was a dramatic 26-23 victory in overtime in Charlotte in Week 13. Bryce Young threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Adam Thielen to give Carolina a 23-20 lead with 30 seconds left in regulation. Baker Mayfield was able to drive the Bucs into position for Chase McLaughlin to hit a game-tying 51-yard field goal as time expired. Tampa Bay won the overtime coin toss but McLaughlin missed a 55-yard field goal and the Panthers subsequently drove into Buccaneers territory before Anthony Nelson forced a Chuba Hubbard fumble that was recovered by Yaya Diaby. A 38-yard run by Rachaad White set McLaughlin up for the 30-yard game-winner. In the rematch in Tampa in Week 17, the Bucs took the drama out of it, opening up a 27-7 lead by the second quarter and cruising to a 48-14 decision. Mayfield threw five touchdown passes against no interceptions, including two scores each to Mike Evans and Jalen McMillan.

The Buccaneers got another season sweep in 2023, with both games occurring in the last six weeks of the season. The first meeting was in Week 13, which the Buccaneers won 21-18 in Tampa. On a rainy afternoon and early evening, the Bucs outlasted a game Panthers squad thanks to wide receiver Chris Godwin's 19-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter on an end-around. That gave the home team an 11-point lead, which the Panthers shaved to three on Hubbard's one-yard touchdown run with five minutes to go. Carolina got the ball back with 3:31 to play but safety Antoine Winfield Jr. saved the Bucs with an interception near midfield. In the rematch in Charlotte in Week 18, Winfield made another critical play, stripping Panthers wide receiver D.J. Chark of the ball inches before the goal line on what seemed certain to be a 43-yard touchdown. That play helped preserve a shutout as the two teams combined for just 447 yards of offense and all the points in a 9-0 decision came on McLaughlin field goals.

Since the two teams started playing each other twice a year, the head-to-head battle has traditionally been one-sided, though that side often flips back and forth. From 2002-17, 13 of the 16 season series between these two teams ended in a sweep, including every one from 2009 through 2017. It went Carolina's way in 2003, 2004, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2017. The Bucs got the sweep in 2002, 2010, 2012 and 2016. Interestingly, the three splits came in years the Buccaneers either made the playoffs (2005, 2007) or really should have (2008…which ended in a four-game losing streak after a 9-3 start).

The 2022 head-to-head, however, was a split, with each team winning at home. Carolina handed the Bucs perhaps their most humbling loss of the season in Week Seven, a 21-3 drubbing at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte. The Panthers came into the game with a 1-5 record and had recently fired Head Coach Matt Rhule and traded superstar running back Christian McCaffrey. Third-string quarterback P.J. Walker completed 16 of his 22 passes and tossed two touchdowns against no interceptions and running backs D'Onta Foreman and Hubbard combined for 181 rushing yards.

The rematch in Week 17 proved to be one of the Buccaneers' most important wins in recent years as it clinched the team's second straight NFC South title and made a potential divisional free-for-all in Week 18 moot. It didn't come easily, as the Panthers rushed out to a quick 14-0 lead on two Sam Darnold touchdown passes, but Tom Brady solved the problem by repeatedly throwing moon shots to Mike Evans. Evans caught touchdown passes of 63, 57 and 30 yards and finished the game with 207 yards on 10 grabs. His last one put the Bucs in the lead for the first time in the fourth quarter, and a Brady touchdown run provided the final winning margin in a 30-24 squeaker.

The Bucs and Panthers met twice in the final three weeks of the 2021 season, with Tampa Bay taking both contests by a combined score of 73-23. In the regular season finale, the Buccaneers got 137 receiving yards from Rob Gronkowski and two touchdown receptions from Evans before wideout Scotty Miller capped the scoring by taking an end-around 33 yards for a touchdown. Two weeks earlier, the Buccaneers had prevailed at Bank of America Stadium when the defense sacked quarterbacks Darnold and Cam Newton a total of seven times and allowing just two field goals. Safety Jordan Whitehead had a key interception and three pass break-ups. Ke'Shawn Vaughn's 55-yard touchdown jaunt, the Bucs' longest run of the year, started the scoring and emerging wideout Cyril Grayson accounted for 95 yards of offense, including a 62-yard reception.

In 2020, the Bucs' September win at home against Carolina was the first of 15 they would stack up on their way to a Super Bowl championship, and the first win as a Buccaneer for Brady. Leonard Fournette paced the offense with 116 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns and Carlton Davis and Whitehead each had interceptions off Teddy Bridgewater in a 31-17 decision. The rematch in Charlotte in November was a high-scoring affair that included the longest run in Buccaneers' history, Ronald Jones' 98-yard touchdown dash. Incredibly, the Buccaneers scored on 10 straight possessions to pull away from the Panthers for a 46-23 win.

In 2019, the Buccaneers secured a tight win in Charlotte on a Thursday night in Week Two when Vernon Hargreaves knocked McCaffrey out of bounds two yards shy of the sticks on an all-or-nothing fourth-down run off a direct snap. That 20-14 Bucs win was balanced four weeks later by a 37-26 win for Carolina in a game played in London.

Perhaps the most notable wins for Tampa Bay in the series with Carolina came in 2002 and 2005. At the midpoint of the 2002 Super Bowl campaign, the Buccaneers were coming off a deflating loss in Philadelphia (again) and had to play at Carolina without their quarterback, Brad Johnson, who woke up with the flu. Defense dominated and the Bucs were trailing 9-6 late in the fourth quarter before Martin Gramatica saved the day with two long field goals. In 2005, the Buccaneers were in the middle of a late-season three-game road swing when they went to Bank of America Stadium and won a battle for first place by a 20-10 score. Ronde Barber punctuated that game with a sack and a critical interception, becoming the first cornerback ever to reach 40 interceptions and 25 sacks in his career.

NOTABLE CONNECTIONS

• Dave Canales is in his second year as the Panthers' head coach, landing that job after his excellent one-season performance as the Buccaneers' offensive coordinator. Canales helped Baker Mayfield revive his career, as the veteran quarterback threw for 4,044 yards and a career-high 28 touchdowns in 2023.
• When Canales left the Buccaneers for the Panthers, he was followed by three former members of Tampa Bay's offensive coaching staff. Brad Idzik, who tutored the receivers for Tampa Bay in 2023, is Canales's offensive coordinator, while Assistant Head Coach/Run Game Coordinator Harold Goodwin and Offensive Line Coach Joe Gilbert landed in similar positions in Charlotte.
• Buccaneers General Manager Jason Licht was a member of the Panthers' scouting staff in 1998.
• Mayfield spent the majority of the 2022 season with the Panthers. He was traded to Carolina by the Cleveland Browns in July of 2022 and subsequently won a preseason competition with Sam Darnold to earn the opening-day starting job under center. He played in seven games with six starts for the Panthers before being waived in December and claimed by the Rams.
• Mayfield's primary backup in 2025, Teddy Bridgewater, played for the Panthers in 2020, starting 15 games and throwing for 3,733 yards, 15 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He signed a three-year deal with Carolina during the 2020 offseason but was traded to the Denver Broncos a year later.
• Outside linebacker Haason Reddick, who is in his first season in Tampa, signed a one-year deal with the Panthers as an unrestricted free agent in 2021 after a breakout 12.5 season with the Arizona Cardinals. Reddick posted 11 sacks for the Panthers and then moved on to the Eagles on a long-term deal a year later.
• Panthers WR David Moore, who is currently on injured reserve, played for the Buccaneers in 2023, splitting the season between the practice squad and the active roster. Moore got into seven games and contributed five catches for 94 yards and a touchdown. He scored another touchdown in the playoffs.
• Buccaneers LB Deion Jones is on his third NFC South team since joining the Bucs late last season. Jones spent his first six seasons with the Atlanta Falcons before one season and Cleveland. He then joined the Panthers in 2023 and played one season for the team, starting three of his 13 appearances.
• Tampa Bay guard Michael Jordan played two seasons for Carolina after being claimed off waivers from the Cincinnati Bengals on Sept. 1, 2021. Jordan made 28 appearances with 10 starts and was then waived in the final roster cuts in August of 2023.
• Carolina Defensive Coordinator Ejiro Evero launched his NFL coaching career in 2007 when he joined Jon Gruden's staff as a defensive quality control coach. He held that position for two seasons under Gruden and one more under Raheem Morris.
• Similarly, Todd Wash, now the Panthers' defensive line coach, got his first NFL coaching job in Tampa in the same year, and with the same title of defensive quality control coach. He was promoted in 2008 to defensive line coach and held that job for three seasons before moving on to the Seattle Seahawks.
• Kevin Winston, who is currently the Panthers' Vice President of Player Affairs, served as Tampa Bay's director of player development on Tony Dungy's staff from 1996-99.

SENIOR COACHING STAFFS

• Tampa Bay:

• Head Coach Todd Bowles
• Offensive Coordinator Josh Grizzard
• Run Game Coordinator/Offensive Line Coach
• Pass Game Coordinator George Edwards
• Run Game Coordinator/Outside Linebackers Coach Larry Foote
• Special Teams Coordinator Thomas McGaughey

• Carolina:

• Head Coach Dave Canales
• Offensive Coordinator Brad Idzik
• Defensive Coordinator Ejiro Evero
• Special Teams Coordinator Tracy Smith

KEY 2025 ROSTER ADDITIONS

Buccaneers:

• QB Connor Bazelak (UDFA)
• QB Teddy Bridgewater (FA)
• LB John Bullock (UDFA)
• T Benjamin Chukwuma (UDFA)
• P Riley Dixon (UFA)
• WR Emeka Egbuka (1st-round draft pick)
• G Dan Feeney (FA)
• T Charlie Heck (UFA)
• WR Tez Johnson (7th-round draft pick)
• G Michael Jordan (FA)
• CB Kindle Vildor (UFA)
• CB Benjamin Morrison (2nd-round draft pick)
• CB Jacob Parrish (3rd-round draft pick)
• DL Elijah Roberts (5th-round draft pick)
• DL Elijah Simmons (FA)
• LB Anthony Walker (FA)
• OLB David Walker (4th-round draft pick…on injured reserve)

Panthers:

• DT Bobby Brown (UFA)
• RB Rico Dowdle (UFA)
• RB Trevor Etienne (4th-round draft pick)
• TE Mitchell Evans (5th-round draft pick)
• K Ryan Fitzgerald (UDFA)
• LB Trevis Gipson (FA)
• WR Jimmy Horn Jr. (6th-round draft pick)
• DE Jared Harrison-Hurte (UDFA)
• DT Cam Jackson (5th-round draft pick)
• P Sam Martin (FA)
• LB Bam Martin-Scott (UDFA)
• WR Tetairoa McMillan (1st-round draft pick)
• S Tre'von Moehrig (UFA)
• S Lathan Ransom (4th-round draft pick)
• WR Hunter Renfrow (FA)
• LB Christian Rozeboom (UFA)
• OLB Nic Scourton (2nd-round draft pick)
• OLB Princely Umanmielen (3rd-round draft pick)
• DT Tershawn Wharton (UFA)

ADDITIONAL 2025 CHANGES/DEVELOPMENTS OF NOTE

Buccaneers:

• The Buccaneers rolled into 2025 with their fourth offensive coordinator in the last four years. This year's transition, however, is a bit different than the last two. In 2023 and 2024, Dave Canales and Liam Coen, respectively, came to town with entirely new offensive systems that the players had to absorb. In 2025, the Buccaneers followed the departure of Coen to be the Jacksonville Jaguars' head coach by promoting former Pass Game Coordinator Josh Grizzard from within. Grizzard is certainly evolving the Bucs' offense in new ways and have his own spin on play-calling, but the basic system remains the same, offering a very helpful continuity for a team that is also returning all of its offensive regulars from a unit that finished in the top five in 2024 in net yards, points scored, rushing yards and passing yards. After Grizzard's promotion, the Buccaneers also hired one of his former colleagues, Kefense Hynson, to be the team's new pass game coordinator.
• To celebrate their landmark 50th season, the Buccaneers have unveiled a new sort of throwback uniform in 2025. In addition to the popular "Creamsicle" togs that they will don for the Thursday night game against Atlanta in Week 15, the Bucs have also worn, for this season only, a white version of their original uniforms worn during the 1976 season. Those uniforms made their debut in the home opener against the Jets in Week Three and were broken out again when the Bucs played at Seattle in Week Five, a game that was a battle of the NFL's two expansion teams from 1976.
• While Todd Bowles remains the play-caller for Tampa Bay's defense, he did make some changes to his defensive coaching staff. Mike Caldwell, who was part of the Bucs' staff from 2019-21 when Bowles was the defensive coordinator, returns to tutor the inside linebackers. Larry Foote has moved from inside linebackers to outside linebackers and is also the team's run game coordinator. George Edwards, who previously coached the outside linebackers, is now the pass game coordinator.
• The Buccaneers started the season without All-Pro left tackle Tristan Wirfs and wide receiver Chris Godwin, but both returned to the lineup in Week Four. Godwin and wide receiver Mike Evans subsequently missed additional time due to injuries but both are now back in action, with Evans being activated from injured reserve in Week 15. Wide receiver Jalen McMillan, who started the season on injured reserve after sustaining a significant neck injury in the preseason, was also activated in Week 15. Since the season has begun the Buccaneers have lost both of their starting offensive guards, Cody Mauch and Ben Bredeson to injured reserve, as well as blocking tight end Ko Kieft. On defense, Tampa Bay has lost starters Calijah Kancey and Zyon McCollum to injured reserve, though Kancey may return to the active roster before the end of the season.
• The changes made to the kickoff process by the NFL during the offseason appear to have impacted the Buccaneers' strategy for that play in a significant manner. Now that a touchback on a ball caught or landing in the end zone puts the ball at the receiving team's 35, the Buccaneers have relied a lot less on touchbacks, which they produced on more than 75% of their kickoffs last year. With that in mind, the team took kick coverage units into serious consideration when shaping the 53-man roster and multiple players – including linebacker John Bullock, cornerback Josh Hayes, outside linebacker Markees Watts and wide receivers Ryan Miller and Kameron Johnson – made the team in large part due to their special teams contributions.

Panthers:

• Just before the start of free agency this past spring, the Panthers made a big move to retain one of their homegrown stars for the long term, signing cornerback Jaycee Horn to a four-year, $100 million deal that made him the highest-paid defensive back in the league. Horn struggled with injuries his first three seasons after being drafted eighth overall in 2021, but he started 15 games last year and made the Pro Bowl. This season, Horn leads the Panthers and is tied for second in the NFL with five interceptions.
• Carolina also retained a number of other players who could have departed in free agency, including cornerback Michael Jackson, who got a two-year, $10.5 commitment. Others who were re-signed, all on one-year contracts, included guard Brady Christensen (currently on IR), center Austin Corbett, wide receiver David Moore (currently on IR), tight end Tommy Tremble and safety Nick Scott. The Panthers also brought back QB Anthony Dalton on a new two-year deal.
• The Panthers made some changes to their football staff, most notably hiring former Bills staffer Denny Kellington as their vice president of player health and performance. Kellington is best known for helping save the life of safety Damar Hamlin by performing CPR on the field after Hamlin collapsed in a game late in the 2022 season. On the coaching staff, Renaldo Hill was hired as secondary coach and AC Carter was brought on to tutor the outside linebackers; the two replaced Bert Watts and Tem Lukabu, respectively.
• At the end of the preseason, the Panthers traded wide receiver Adam Thielen back to his original team, the Vikings, for a swap of four picks in the 2026 and 207 drafts, the highest being a fourth-rounder in 2027 gong to Carolina. Thielen has subsequently been released by the Vikings and signed by the Steelers. The Panthers released outside linebacker Jadeveon Clowney in May after he had spent just one season with the team, and he later signed in Dallas. The Panthers also cut ties with one of their long-time defensive stalwarts when they elected not to re-sign linebacker Shaq Thompson after the season.
• Among the notable players currently on injured reserve for the Panthers are guards Robert Hunt and Brady Christensen, wide receiver David Moore and outside linebacker Patrick Jones.

INJURY REPORT

Key:

DNP: Did not participate in practice

LP: Limited participation in practice

FP: Full participation in practice

NL: Not listed

Buccaneers:

• LB Lavonte David (knee) – WEDS: DNP
• LB SirVocea Dennis (hip) – WEDS: FP
• WR Mike Evans (collarbone) – WEDS: LP
• WR Chris Godwin (fibula) – WEDS: FP
• TE Cade Otton (knee) – WEDS: LP
• S Tykee Smith (neck/shoulder) – WEDS: FP
• S Rashad Wisdom (quad) – WEDS: FP

Panthers^:

• T Ikem Ekwonu (knee) – WEDS: DNP
• CB Jaycee Horn (rest) – WEDS: LP
• G Damien Lewis (illness) – WEDS: DNP
• WR Tetairoa McMillan (foot/ankle) – WEDS: DNP
• WR David Moore (elbow) – WEDS: FP
• T Taylor Moton (back) – WEDS: LP
• LB Trevin Wallace (shoulder) – WEDS: FP
• DT Turk Wharton (hamstring) – WEDS: DNP

^ The Panthers conducted a walk-through on Wednesday. The practice status reports from that day are estimations.

BUCCANEERS' UNIFORM COMBINATION

The Buccaneers will wear white jerseys and pewter pants in Week 16 on the road against the Panthers.

WEATHER FORECAST

Partly cloudy, high of 64, low of 39, 5% chance of rain, 51% humidity, winds out of the W at 5 mph.

GAME REFEREE

Head referee: Shawn Smith (11th season, eighth as referee)

BETTING LINE

• Favorite: Buccaneers (-3.0)
• Over/Under: 45.5

INDIVIDUAL STAT LEADERS

Buccaneers-

Points Scored: K Chase McLaughlin, 105

Touchdowns: RB Sean Tucker, 7

Passing Yards: QB Baker Mayfield, 2,999

Passer Rating: QB Baker Mayfield, 90.6

Rushing Yards: RB Rachaad White, 494

Receptions: WR Emeka Egbuka, 58

Receiving Yards: WR Emeka Egbuka, 870

Interceptions: LB Jamel Dean, 3

Sacks: Yaya Diaby, 6.0

Tackles: LB Lavonte David, 95

Panthers-

Points Scored: K Ryan Fitzgerald, 82

Touchdowns: RB Rico Dowdle, 7

Passing Yards: QB Bryce Young, 2,500

Passer Rating: QB Bryce Young, 88.4

Rushing Yards: RB Rico Dowdle, 978

Receptions: WR Tetairoa McMillan, 59

Receiving Yards: WR Tetairoa McMillan, 851

Interceptions: CB Jaycee Horn, 5

Sacks: DT Derrick Brown, 4.0

Tackles: LB Christian Rozeboom, 97

* On season-ending injured reserve

TEAM STAT RANKINGS

Buccaneers-

Scoring Offense: 15th (23.4 ppg)

Total Offense: 21st (316.6 ypg)

Rushing Offense: 21st (113.2 ypg)

Passing Offense: t-20th (203.4 ypg)

First Downs Per Game: 19th (19.3)

Third-Down Pct.: 16th (38.7%)

Sacks Per Pass Attempt Allowed: 14th (6.65%)

Red Zone TD Pct.: 23rd (53.7%)

Scoring Defense: 24th (25.3 ppg)

Total Defense: 25th (348.2 ypg)

Rushing Defense: 10th (101.4 ypg)

Passing Defense: 30th (246.9 ypg)

First Downs Allowed Per Game: 17th (19.3)

Third-Down Pct. Allowed: 20th (40.5%)

Sacks Per Pass Attempt: 19th (6.89%)

Red Zone TD Pct. Allowed: t-30th (72.2%)

Turnover Margin: t-5th (+9)

Panthers-

Scoring Offense: 28th (18.9 ppg)

Total Offense: 24th (309.0 ypg)

Rushing Offense: 9th (125.6 ypg)

Passing Offense: 25th (183.4 ypg)

First Downs Per Game: t-22nd (18.9)

Third-Down Pct.: 20th (37.9%)

Sacks Per Pass Attempt Allowed: 18th (7.31%)

Red Zone TD Pct.: 26th (51.3%)

Scoring Defense: 14th (22.6 ppg)

Total Defense: 17th (331.5 ypg)

Rushing Defense: 16th (116.0 ypg)

Passing Defense: 17th (215.5 ypg)

First Downs Allowed Per Game: t-11th (18.9)

Third-Down Pct. Allowed: 29th (44.9%)

Sacks Per Pass Attempt: 30th (5.32%)

Red Zone TD Pct. Allowed: 12th (56.5%)

Turnover Margin: t-15th (-1)

WHAT TO WATCH FOR

• After his 132-yard outing in Week 15 following a six-week stint on injured reserve, WR Mike Evans now has 12,956 career receiving yards. With 44 more, he would become just the 22nd player in NFL history to hit the 13,000-yard plateau.
• LB Lavonte David has 1,695 career tackles. Per StatsPass, he would become the seventh player since 1994 to reach 1,700 tackles.
• S Antoine Winfield Jr. has 18.0 career sacks, tied with four other players for the 11th most by a defensive back since sacks became an official statistic in 1982. Two more sacks would allow him to tie Charles Woodson for 10th place on that list.
• WR Emeka Egbuka has 870 receiving yards in 2025. With 95 more he would pass Mike Williams (964) for the fourth-most receiving yards by a rookie in team history.
• If the Buccaneers win two of their final three games, they will clinch a fifth straight NFC South title. In addition, if they get those two wins, it will be 100 regular-season victories for the team since the arrival of Jason Licht in 2014, which would make him the first general manager in franchise history to reach the 100-win mark.

NOTABLY QUOTABLE

• Head Coach Todd Bowles on how gratifying it was to see the offense at the closest it's been to full strength all season, and if he's hopeful that it could become more explosive down the stretch: "Well, that's the hope. You know, it was gratifying to see them take the hits they took and get up from it and be perfectly fine. I think that's what you worry about the most because that's the one thing you couldn't replicate in practice. Going forward, when you've got your full corps of receivers finally and you've got a lot of guys healthy – obviously we still have two backup guards, but at the same time, they're getting continuity down there…So, we hope we can build some chemistry and execute some plays on that."
• Quarterback Baker Mayfield on wide receiver Mike Evans' competitiveness: "Especially when he's going like he was Thursday night... You never want to take things for granted when you have a guy like Mike that has been injured, wants to come back, wants to help his team out and you feel that competitive nature from him -- that fire -- it just demands everybody to raise their standards. We love that Mike is vocal about it. He obviously expects greatness out of himself and expects people to rise to the occasion as well, so yeah, need him to keep doing that."
• Wide receiver Mike Evans on how much having the weekend off after playing on Thursday night helped going into Week 16: "It helped a lot. That's one of the biggest parts of this game, the best teams are the teams that stay healthy, especially towards the end of December. We kind of got lucky in that regard to have a Thursday night game so late, because guys are fresh, we're able to get three practices in this week, so that should be good for us."
• Bowles on why S Antoine Winfield Jr.'s splash plays haven't been as frequent this year: "Well, they haven't really been going to him. He's been doing his job. He's been doing a heck of a job. They haven't been going to him. With the in-and-out guys on the front and in the back end, we probably asked him to babysit a little more during certain things, but [I am] very happy with his play and the plays he made early [and] in the middle of the season. Sometimes the coverage changes, sometimes the defense changes, but he's right where he needs to be from an energetic and a leadership standpoint. [I am] very happy with his play."