PJ Walker threw two touchdown passes and the Carolina Panthers shut down Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a 21-3 victory Sunday afternoon at Charlotte, N.C.
It was the first Panthers win under interim coach Steve Wilks and it came just three days after the trade of star running back Christian McCaffrey to the San Francisco 49ers.
The Panthers (2-5) were playing at home for the first time since the firing of coach Matt Rhule.
The Buccaneers (3-4) managed 322 yards of total offense. Brady was 32 of 49 for 290 yards, but Tampa Bay’s ground game was held to 46 yards.
Since Brady joined the Buccaneers, it was the first time in five meetings that Carolina topped Tampa Bay.
The Buccaneers didn’t score until Ryan Succop’s 27-yard field goal with 13:38 remaining, cutting the deficit to 14-3.
Carolina running backs D’Onta Foreman and Chuba Hubbard, the duo tasked to replace McCaffrey’s production, made key plays. Foreman gained 118 yards on 15 carries and Hubbard picked up 63 yards on nine carries with a touchdown.
Walker was 16-for-22 for 177 yards with no interceptions.
The Panthers’ second touchdown came by going 77 yards in three plays in the third quarter, with a 60-yard run by Foreman coming before Hubbard’s 17-yard scoring run.
After Tampa Bay’s field goal, the Panthers struck slightly more than four minutes later when Walker connected with tight end Tommy Tremble for a 29-yard scoring play. It was Tremble’s first touchdown of the season and the second of his career.
Carolina’s first score came on Walker’s 20-yard pass play to DJ Moore with 29 seconds left in the first half. That drive accounted for 80 of the Panthers’ 152 first-half yards.
Tampa Bay had only 127 first-half yards. The Buccaneers dis outgain the Panthers 79-18 in a scoreless first quarter.
The teams combined for 12 punts – six by each team — less than 41 minutes into the game. Carolina punted a final time with about a minute to play.
–Field Level Media