McCaffrey does his thing, again
One of the Buccaneers tallest tasks was trying to contain running back Christian McCaffrey. He torched them last time out. McCaffrey managed another strong outing against Tampa Bay.
He toted the ball 10 times for 106 yards. He also added 55 receiving yards. In all McCaffrey had 19 touches for 161 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown.
He broke a back-breaking 53-yard run in the first quarter to give the Panthers their first touchdown of the day.
If 2018 was any indication, McCaffrey should become a thorn in the Buccaneers’ side for years to come.
The offense can’t put Carolina away late
The Buccaneers defense did all it could. The Panthers were unable to score despite having four possessions in the fourth quarter.
Adams picked off Newton twice, and a Jason Pierre-Paul sack helped stall another Panthers drive. However, the offense couldn’t make a single play to put the game away.
Tampa’s first possession in the final period stalled due to a trio of penalties including two offensive pass interference calls on Mike Evans.
The remaining drives saw the Bucs play extremely conservative, rushing the ball and punting. In four drives, the Bucs held the ball for 4:19 minutes in the final quarter.
The offense was fortunate, but they need to carry the torch at the end of games.