On a day with almost no bright spots for the Bucs in a crushing loss to the Carolina Panthers, I am stretching the thread very thin when I list these players as the “most impressive.”

Tristan Wirfs

On a day when most of the offensive line struggled to keep Tom Brady clean, Wirfs continued to hold down the right side of the line in pass protection. He ended with a loss to Brian Burns on one rep, but it was after a prolonged time of having to block. Other than that, Wirfs was the lone lineman to win consistently.

Jamel Dean

Dean was rarely targeted deep. One of the lone passes his way was a deep fade to receiver D.J. Moore. Moore was unable to maintain possession of the ball and keep his feet in bounds due in part to Dean’s tight coverage.

Antoine Winfield Jr.

Prior to Winfield’s departure due to a possible concussion, he had consistently shut down the slot receiver options for Carolina. On the play that knocked him out of the game, he blew up a slot screen for a loss. Winfield was also responsible for limiting the Panthers’ ability to run. After he exited, the Panthers’ ground attack lit the Bucs up on play after play.

Cade Otton

Otton became a big part of the offense in the second half. For the day, he reeled in four of his five targets for 64 yards. This included a 35-yard catch-and-run on a seam route and a 19-yard reception where he fought through multiple would-be tacklers. All of Otton’s catches came in the second half when the Bucs were attempting to mount a comeback.

Ryan Succop

Succop had one attempt on a play that the Bucs should have gone for a touchdown. But hey, he made the kick so #NotaShutout.