Carolina Panthers vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers — Buccaneers win 16-14, Jan 3, 2026

atPanthers at Buccaneers

Week 18

Final

How it finished

Buccaneers edged Panthers 16–14.

Buccaneers led 13–7 at the half and held the lead.

Buccaneers outscored Panthers 10–0 in the 1st quarter — the swing that decided it.

The Buccaneers lead the NFC South by 0½, winners of 2 straight. The Panthers sit 2nd in the NFC South, 0½ games back, coming off a win.

The Buccaneers are up next at Jaguars (Aug 28), then at Bengals. The Panthers are up next home vs Texans (Aug 28), then home vs Bears.

Win probabilityTB win %

B.Young pass deep middle to T.McMillan to TB 8 for 40 yards (J.Parrish).CAR +16%
R.Dowdle FUMBLES (Aborted) at TB 24, RECOVERED by TB-L.David at TB 29.TB +13%
B.Mayfield pass short right to C.Otton to CAR 45 for 20 yards (T.Moehrig).TB +13%

Team stats

What each side actually did with the ball.

Carolina Panthers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

285Total yards338

49Total plays66

5.8Yards / play5.1

16First downs21

266Passing yards198

24/35Comp / att16/22

7.6Yards / pass8.3

13Passing 1st downs12

19Rushing yards140

14Rush attempts42

1.4Yards / rush3.3

1Rushing 1st downs7

1-83rd down8-15

2-24th down0-0

2-2Red zone1-3

0-0Sacks allowed2-5

5-46Penalties6-45

3Turnovers↓1

2Fumbles lost↓0

22:35Possession37:25

Top performers

CAR

PassBryce Young24/35, 266 YDS · 2 TD · 1 INT
RushChuba Hubbard5 CAR, 10 YDS
RecTetairoa McMillan4 REC, 85 YDS

PassBaker Mayfield16/22, 203 YDS · 1 TD · 1 INT
RushBucky Irving26 CAR, 85 YDS
RecCade Otton7 REC, 94 YDS · 1 TD

Drive summary

Panthers10 drives

2 TD1 Miss FG3 Punt3 Turnover1 End

Scored on 2 of 10 · 27 yds/drive · long 72

Buccaneers9 drives

1 TD3 FG1 Miss FG3 Punt1 Turnover

Scored on 4 of 9 · 39 yds/drive · long 74

Scoring summary

Every point in the order it was scored, with the running score beside it.

Q1TDCade Otton 18 Yd pass from Baker Mayfield (Chase McLaughlin Kick)0–7
Q1FGChase McLaughlin 29 Yd Field Goal0–10
Q2TDTommy Tremble 8 Yd pass from Bryce Young (Ryan Fitzgerald Kick)7–10
Q2FGChase McLaughlin 36 Yd Field Goal7–13
Q4FGChase McLaughlin 48 Yd Field Goal 7–16
Q4TDJalen Coker 8 Yd pass from Bryce Young (Ryan Fitzgerald Kick)14–16

Line score and box score

Points by quarter across the top, then every player who recorded a stat underneath, a table per unit. The pills switch clubs; the defensive table is the half of a football box most scoreboards leave out.

Qtr	1	2	3	4	T
CARCarolina Panthers	0	7	0	7	14
TBTampa Bay Buccaneers	10	3	0	3	16

Passing

Player	C/ATT	YDS	AVG	TD	INT	SACKS	QBR	RTG
Bryce Young	24/35	266	7.6	2	1	0-0	44.9	98.0

Rushing

Player	CAR	YDS	AVG	LONG
Chuba Hubbard	5	10	2.0	5
Rico Dowdle	7	10	1.4	4
Bryce Young	2	-1	-0.5	0

Receiving

Player	REC	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG	TGTS
Tetairoa McMillan	4	85	21.3	0	40	6
Jalen Coker	6	47	7.8	1	18	7
Tommy Tremble	3	38	12.7	1	17	4
Brycen Tremayne	2	27	13.5	0	20	2
Xavier Legette	3	22	7.3	0	12	4
Rico Dowdle	2	20	10.0	0	25	2
Jimmy Horn Jr.	1	15	15.0	0	15	1
Chuba Hubbard	2	7	3.5	0	5	2
Mitchell Evans	1	5	5.0	0	5	2

Fumbles

Player	FUM	LOST	REC
Rico Dowdle	1	1	1
Tetairoa McMillan	1	1	0
Bryce Young	1	0	0

Defense

Player	TOT	SOLO	SACKS	TFL	PD	QB HTS
Derrick Brown	13	5	0	0	0	0
Nick Scott	9	6	0	0	0	0
Christian Rozeboom	8	6	0	0	2	0
Mike Jackson	7	4	0	0	0	0
Tre'von Moehrig	6	4	1	2	0	1
Krys Barnes	6	2	0.5	1	0	1
DJ Wonnum	5	4	0	0	0	0
Nic Scourton	5	2	0.5	0	0	1
A'Shawn Robinson	5	1	0	0	0	1
Chau Smith-Wade	4	3	0	0	0	0
Trevis Gipson	2	1	0	0	0	0
Princely Umanmielen	2	1	0	1	0	0

Interceptions

Player	INT	YDS	TD
Christian Rozeboom	1	20	0

Punt returns

Player	NO	YDS	AVG	LONG	TD
Trevor Etienne	1	3	3.0	3	0
Brycen Tremayne	1	0	0.0	0	0

Kicking

Player	FG	PCT	LONG	XP	PTS
Ryan Fitzgerald	0/1	0.0	0	2/2	2

Punting

Player	NO	YDS	AVG	TB	In 20	LONG
Sam Martin	3	139	46.3	1	1	50

League standings

The full ladder, with both clubs marked.

AFC East

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Buffalo Bills2-01.000W2

2New England Patriots1-0.750W1

3New York Jets1-1.500W1

4Miami Dolphins0-2.000L2

AFC North

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Cincinnati Bengals2-01.000W2

2Baltimore Ravens2-01.000W2

3Pittsburgh Steelers1-1.500L1

4Cleveland Browns0-2.000L2

AFC South

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Tennessee Titans2-01.000W2

2Jacksonville Jaguars1-1.500L1

3Indianapolis Colts0-1.250L1

4Houston Texans0-2.000L2

AFC West

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Los Angeles Chargers1-1.500L1

2Las Vegas Raiders1-1.500W1

3Denver Broncos1-1.500L1

4Kansas City Chiefs0-2.000L2

NFC East

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Dallas Cowboys2-01.000W2

2Washington Commanders1-1.500L1

3New York Giants1-1.500W1

4Philadelphia Eagles0-2.000L2

NFC North

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Detroit Lions1-1.500W1

2Minnesota Vikings1-1.500L1

3Green Bay Packers1-1.500W1

4Chicago Bears1-1.500L1

NFC South

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Tampa Bay Buccaneers2-01.000W2

2Carolina Panthers2-1.667W1

3Atlanta Falcons1-1.500W1

4New Orleans Saints0-2.000L2

NFC West

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Los Angeles Rams2-01.000W2

2San Francisco 49ers1-1.500W1

3Arizona Cardinals1-2.333L1

4Seattle Seahawks0-2.000L2

Panthers at Buccaneers

Carolina

Panthers

Tampa Bay

Buccaneers

Post Game SummaryStat Savant

atPanthers at Buccaneers

Week 18

Final

How it finished

Buccaneers edged Panthers 16–14.

Buccaneers led 13–7 at the half and held the lead.

Buccaneers outscored Panthers 10–0 in the 1st quarter — the swing that decided it.

The Buccaneers lead the NFC South by 0½, winners of 2 straight. The Panthers sit 2nd in the NFC South, 0½ games back, coming off a win.

The Buccaneers are up next at Jaguars (Aug 28), then at Bengals. The Panthers are up next home vs Texans (Aug 28), then home vs Bears.

Win probabilityTB win %

B.Young pass deep middle to T.McMillan to TB 8 for 40 yards (J.Parrish).CAR +16%
R.Dowdle FUMBLES (Aborted) at TB 24, RECOVERED by TB-L.David at TB 29.TB +13%
B.Mayfield pass short right to C.Otton to CAR 45 for 20 yards (T.Moehrig).TB +13%

Team stats

What each side actually did with the ball.

Carolina Panthers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

285Total yards338

49Total plays66

5.8Yards / play5.1

16First downs21

266Passing yards198

24/35Comp / att16/22

7.6Yards / pass8.3

13Passing 1st downs12

19Rushing yards140

14Rush attempts42

1.4Yards / rush3.3

1Rushing 1st downs7

1-83rd down8-15

2-24th down0-0

2-2Red zone1-3

0-0Sacks allowed2-5

5-46Penalties6-45

3Turnovers↓1

2Fumbles lost↓0

22:35Possession37:25

Top performers

CAR

PassBryce Young24/35, 266 YDS · 2 TD · 1 INT
RushChuba Hubbard5 CAR, 10 YDS
RecTetairoa McMillan4 REC, 85 YDS

PassBaker Mayfield16/22, 203 YDS · 1 TD · 1 INT
RushBucky Irving26 CAR, 85 YDS
RecCade Otton7 REC, 94 YDS · 1 TD

Drive summary

Panthers10 drives

2 TD1 Miss FG3 Punt3 Turnover1 End

Scored on 2 of 10 · 27 yds/drive · long 72

Buccaneers9 drives

1 TD3 FG1 Miss FG3 Punt1 Turnover

Scored on 4 of 9 · 39 yds/drive · long 74

Scoring summary

Every point in the order it was scored, with the running score beside it.

Q1TDCade Otton 18 Yd pass from Baker Mayfield (Chase McLaughlin Kick)0–7
Q1FGChase McLaughlin 29 Yd Field Goal0–10
Q2TDTommy Tremble 8 Yd pass from Bryce Young (Ryan Fitzgerald Kick)7–10
Q2FGChase McLaughlin 36 Yd Field Goal7–13
Q4FGChase McLaughlin 48 Yd Field Goal 7–16
Q4TDJalen Coker 8 Yd pass from Bryce Young (Ryan Fitzgerald Kick)14–16

Line score and box score

Qtr	1	2	3	4	T
CARCarolina Panthers	0	7	0	7	14
TBTampa Bay Buccaneers	10	3	0	3	16

Passing

Player	C/ATT	YDS	AVG	TD	INT	SACKS	QBR	RTG
Bryce Young	24/35	266	7.6	2	1	0-0	44.9	98.0

Rushing

Player	CAR	YDS	AVG	LONG
Chuba Hubbard	5	10	2.0	5
Rico Dowdle	7	10	1.4	4
Bryce Young	2	-1	-0.5	0

Receiving

Player	REC	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG	TGTS
Tetairoa McMillan	4	85	21.3	0	40	6
Jalen Coker	6	47	7.8	1	18	7
Tommy Tremble	3	38	12.7	1	17	4
Brycen Tremayne	2	27	13.5	0	20	2
Xavier Legette	3	22	7.3	0	12	4
Rico Dowdle	2	20	10.0	0	25	2
Jimmy Horn Jr.	1	15	15.0	0	15	1
Chuba Hubbard	2	7	3.5	0	5	2
Mitchell Evans	1	5	5.0	0	5	2

Fumbles

Player	FUM	LOST	REC
Rico Dowdle	1	1	1
Tetairoa McMillan	1	1	0
Bryce Young	1	0	0

Defense

Player	TOT	SOLO	SACKS	TFL	PD	QB HTS
Derrick Brown	13	5	0	0	0	0
Nick Scott	9	6	0	0	0	0
Christian Rozeboom	8	6	0	0	2	0
Mike Jackson	7	4	0	0	0	0
Tre'von Moehrig	6	4	1	2	0	1
Krys Barnes	6	2	0.5	1	0	1
DJ Wonnum	5	4	0	0	0	0
Nic Scourton	5	2	0.5	0	0	1
A'Shawn Robinson	5	1	0	0	0	1
Chau Smith-Wade	4	3	0	0	0	0
Trevis Gipson	2	1	0	0	0	0
Princely Umanmielen	2	1	0	1	0	0

Interceptions

Player	INT	YDS	TD
Christian Rozeboom	1	20	0

Punt returns

Player	NO	YDS	AVG	LONG	TD
Trevor Etienne	1	3	3.0	3	0
Brycen Tremayne	1	0	0.0	0	0

Kicking

Player	FG	PCT	LONG	XP	PTS
Ryan Fitzgerald	0/1	0.0	0	2/2	2

Punting

Player	NO	YDS	AVG	TB	In 20	LONG
Sam Martin	3	139	46.3	1	1	50

League standings

The full ladder, with both clubs marked.

AFC East

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Buffalo Bills2-01.000W2

2New England Patriots1-0.750W1

3New York Jets1-1.500W1

4Miami Dolphins0-2.000L2

AFC North

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Cincinnati Bengals2-01.000W2

2Baltimore Ravens2-01.000W2

3Pittsburgh Steelers1-1.500L1

4Cleveland Browns0-2.000L2

AFC South

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Tennessee Titans2-01.000W2

2Jacksonville Jaguars1-1.500L1

3Indianapolis Colts0-1.250L1

4Houston Texans0-2.000L2

AFC West

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Los Angeles Chargers1-1.500L1

2Las Vegas Raiders1-1.500W1

3Denver Broncos1-1.500L1

4Kansas City Chiefs0-2.000L2

NFC East

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Dallas Cowboys2-01.000W2

2Washington Commanders1-1.500L1

3New York Giants1-1.500W1

4Philadelphia Eagles0-2.000L2

NFC North

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Detroit Lions1-1.500W1

2Minnesota Vikings1-1.500L1

3Green Bay Packers1-1.500W1

4Chicago Bears1-1.500L1

NFC South

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Tampa Bay Buccaneers2-01.000W2

2Carolina Panthers2-1.667W1

3Atlanta Falcons1-1.500W1

4New Orleans Saints0-2.000L2

NFC West

#ClubW-LPCTStreak

1Los Angeles Rams2-01.000W2

2San Francisco 49ers1-1.500W1

3Arizona Cardinals1-2.333L1

4Seattle Seahawks0-2.000L2