Carolina Panthers fall to Buccaneers as offense struggles

Cam Newton had a rough night that culminated in an 0-2 start for Carolina.

The Panthers and Cam Newton entered Thursday Night Football in what felt like a must-win position. After falling to the Rams, a loss to the division rival Buccaneers would put them in a precarious spot in a crowded and talented NFC.

In a sloppy, rainy game in Charlotte, the Panthers fell to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 20-14 and dropped to 0-2 on the season. It was a slow, turnover and penalty marred game that seemed to drag on through the night.

The Panthers were able to mount a last second comeback attempt but their final drive ended at the Tampa Bay two-yard line, where the Panthers were stifled on a 4th and short. The Panthers ran a fake Philly Special, where rather than tossing the ball to cross receiver, running back Christian McCaffrey kept the ball but was stopped along the sideline.

The Carolina offense could get nothing going offensively, failing to score a touchdown. The Panthers’ points came on four field goals by rookie kicker Joey Slye and a safety on a terrific play by superstar linebacker Luke Kuechly.

Newton was especially erratic on Thursday night, missing early and often on intermediate and deep throws. He struggled with pushing the ball down the field, as his arm strength left some to be desired. On intermediate routes, he routinely missed wide and struggled to put the ball in a position for his receivers to make plays.

He finished 25 for 51, with 333 yards, and no touchdowns. He had one interception called back on a controversial holding call and lost a fumble.

Even on passes that he connected on, Newton appeared to lack arm strength, evidenced early on a 44-yard strike to Curtis Samuel. If Cam puts this pass out in front, the Panthers have an early lead, as there is no one ahead of Samuel.

The Buccaneers defense focused on stopping McCaffrey, holding the star runner to 37 yards on 16 carries and not allowing him to find the end zone.

Much maligned quarterback Jameis Winston played an effective, unspectacular game. However, on a night where the Panthers offense sputtered, it was exactly what the Buccaneers needed. A mistake from their quarterback would’ve surely sunk Tampa, as it did its best with penalties (12 for 66 yards) and a missed field goal to give Carolina the game.

Winston made just enough plays to win the game. He hit Mike Evans on a big play down the sideline and fired a strike to Chris Godwin for the Buccaneers first touchdown.

The Panthers defense was good for most of the night, likely doing enough to get the team a win if the offense had been able to take advantage.

With the Bucs backed up on their goal line and the offense struggling, Kuechly burst through the line of scrimmage and gave the Panthers two points on the safety, pulling the game to 17-14 in the 4th quarter.

The Panthers could get no closer, as the Panthers offense would turn the ball over on downs twice and punt on its final three drives of the game.

Undoubtedly, the Panthers coaching staff will be questioned for not running Cam on the final play of the game but there are a bevy of issues with this team right now that will need to be fixed very quickly if it’s going to stay around in the NFC.

With the Cardinals coming to town next week, expect a long week of questioning by reporters and fans alike about the direction of this team.