Losers of five out of their first six games this season, the Bucs finally opened up NFC South play Sunday afternoon at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte. Awaiting them after their short trip up were the 3-2, division-leading and defending division champion Panthers, a team that was in search of its third consecutive win. Meanwhile, Tampa Bay was simply looking to open up a lifeline back into contention for itself before the calendar flips to November.

It was essentially do or die time for the Bucs coming into their final October game. Because with a win over the Panthers, they would be just a game back in the win column despite only being 2-5. Week 8 would then bring another NFC South contest against the Falcons, giving them yet another opportunity to make up some ground in the division race. On the flip side, a loss to Carolina would’ve dropped Tampa Bay to 1-6 and potentially forced the team into seller mode ahead of the trade deadline on Nov. 10.

How would the Bucs respond to the opportunity in front of them? As it turned out, they would respond by playing their best game of the season – and their best game in a long time. Tampa Bay dominated Carolina in all three phases of the game. The offense ran for 258 yards. The defense racked up five sacks, three takeaways and a touchdown. The special teams units added a takeaway, a blocked extra point and a two-point conversion off the block. All of that combined resulted in a 43-13 victory for the Bucs that got them to 2-5 on the year.

Here’s a recap of all the action from Sunday’s Buccaneer beatdown of the Panthers in Charlotte:

Bucs 43, Panthers 13

The Bucs won the coin toss and actually elected to take the ball first, and it was a good thing that they did. They went to Bucky Irving early and often on their opening drive with a whole lot of success, first with runs of 15 and seven yards before Baker Mayfield extended the drive with a 19-yard pass to Tez Johnson on a 3rd & 10. From there, it was back to Irving, who picked up chunk after chunk – with two more third-down conversions – before he found the end zone from four yards out.

Tampa Bay went 70 yards in 14 plays, taking 7:38 off the clock to get an early 7-0 lead over Carolina. On the drive, Irving ran 10 times for 47 yards and a touchdown while also catching a pass for four yards.

Bucs RB Bucky Irving – Photo by: IMAGN Images via Reuters Connect

The Panthers offense got a quick third-down conversion via Chuba Hubbard to open their opening drive, but the Bucs defense got off the field soon after thanks to a Bryce Young incompletion over the middle of the field.

Carolina’s defense got off the field quickly on Tampa Bay’s next possession, but Riley Dixon’s ensuing punt was muffed by former Buc David Moore. Ko Kieft was there to recover at the Panthers’ 18-yard line, setting Mayfield and the offense up with another scoring chance in the red zone. Tez Johnson picked up 14 yards on an end-around and while the quarter soon came to an end, Tampa Bay had the ball inside the 5-yard line to begin the second, already up 7-0.

Unfortunately for Todd Bowles and the visitors, the offense couldn’t punch the ball into the end zone. Sean Tucker slipped on a second-down carry and went down for a loss, then Mayfield had his third-down pass tipped at the line of scrimmage. Chase McLaughlin hit a 22-yard field goal to put the Bucs up 10-0, but it was hard to feel like that wasn’t an ominous missed opportunity.

The Bucs defense took it upon itself to build upon the lead from there, though. After a Tommy Tremble holding penalty negated a 30-yard run by Hubbard, Yaya Diaby picked up his first sack of the season to bring up 3rd & 14. Then, Al-Quadin Muhammad got to Young for a sack-fumble, and Calijah Kancey was there to scoop the ball up and return it 32 yards for a touchdown. All of a sudden, Tampa Bay was up 17-0.

Bucs DT Calijah Kancey – Photo by: IMAGN Images via Reuters Connect

The Panthers answered right back, with tight end Darren Waller getting behind the Buccaneer defense for a 50-yard touchdown. But on the extra point attempt, Tykee Smith got through for a block and Zyon McCollum was in the right spot to scoop it up and take it back for two points. That extended the Tampa Bay lead to 19-6 and grabbed momentum right back.

Momentum stayed with the guys in pewter and white, too, as the run game continued to dominate. After Irving got loose for gains of 11, 5 and 6 yards, Kenny Gainwell broke free for a 29-yard run down to the Carolina 13. Soon enough, Irving punched the ball in from a yard out for his second touchdown of the day and a 26-6 lead.

The Panthers got the ball back with just under four minutes to go in the half, and with the Bucs having taken the ball to open the game, they had a chance to double things up and get themselves back in the game. Instead, the Tampa Bay defense kept the pressure on. Zyon McCollum intercepted a Bryce Young pass intended for Jalen Coker and just like that, it was Mayfield and the Buccaneer offense taking over in plus territory.

Tampa Bay offensive coordinator Zac Robinson stayed with the ground game until a second 3rd & 2 of the next drive, when Mayfield hit Chris Godwin Jr. for a first down inside the 10. And even after an illegal shift penalty negated a Mayfield-to-Godwin touchdown, Mayfield scrambled on the very next play and found a wide-open Tez Johnson for a touchdown with four seconds left in the half. With that, the Bucs took a 33-6 lead into the break.

Bucs WR Tez Johnson – Photo by: IMAGN Images via Reuters Connect

Early on in the third, the Buccaneer defense continued to handle business. Yaya Diaby picked up his second and third sacks of the game to get the ball over to Mayfield and the offense. And even after the offense didn’t manage to do anything to add to the lead, the defense came through again. First, Vita Vea dropped Young for a sack, then Tykee Smith intercepted him for Tampa Bay’s fourth takeaway of the day.

That interception turned into a 44-yard Chase McLaughlin field goal and a 36-6 lead more than halfway through the third quarter.

The Panthers responded with what, at the time, was their best offensive drive of the day. But it ended in zero points after a fourth-down drop at the 5-yard line. The answer from the Bucs? Their longest drive of the day. They ran it on nine straight plays and covered 94 yards, with Sean Tucker getting in on the fun with a 46-yard touchdown run. That drive of 6:29 gave Tampa Bay a 43-6 lead.

With Bryce Young’s day over with in a 37-point game, the Panthers turned to Kenny Pickett, who promptly led an eight-play, 71-yard drive in 4:53 that ended with a 12-yard touchdown run by Anthony Tyus. With the PAT, Carolina was within 30 again at 43-13 with 5:28 to go.

From there, the rest was purely academic as the Buccaneers finished out what felt like a cathartic 43-13 win over the Panthers.

In his return to action after three games on the sideline, Baker Mayfield wasn’t asked to do much. He completed 7 of his 11 passes for 64 yards and a touchdown, but it was all about the rushing attack for the Bucs. Bucky Irving led the way with 24 carries for 106 yards and two touchdowns, while Kenny Gainwell had his best game as a Buccaneer with 14 carries for 88 yards. Sean Tucker got in on the action late with that 46-yard touchdown and as a whole, Tampa Bay ran 49 times for 258 yards, averaging 5.3 yards per carry.

The Bucs defense did its thing, too, with Yaya Diaby racking up three sacks, Al-Quadin Muhammad adding one (and forcing a fumble with it) and Vita Vea getting another. Calijah Kancey recovered that sack-fumble by Muhammad for a touchdown, plus Zyon McCollum and Tykee Smith chipped in with interceptions of Bryce Young.

The Bucs (2-5) now return home in Week 8 and will be looking for their first victory at Raymond James Stadium this season when they host the Atlanta Falcons (2-4). Kickoff for next Sunday’s game is set for 1:00 p.m.