The Bucs finally don their t-shirts and hats as they win the NFC South with a 32-6 win over the Carolina Panthers. The defense picked up right where they left off in Week 15, playing aggressive football. Going back to their overtime win over the Bills the defense has not given up a touchdown in eight-and-a-half quarters. Tom Brady was efficient with the ball, though the balance in play-calling helped take the load off his shoulders. With the victory, the Bucs captured their first NFC South title since 2007.

Brady finished the game going 18-30 with 222 yards and 1 touchdown. Antonio Brown led the team with 10 receptions and 101 receiving yards. Ke’Shawn Vaughn (70) and Ronald Jones (65) totaled 135 yards on the ground. Both players reached the end zone once.

The defense was fantastic against the Panthers. They harassed the pocket with consistent pressure to the tune of seven sacks. Receivers were blanketed with little room to get open, giving more time for the front to get home. Jordan Whitehead was all over the field and got the game’s lone interception.

Brown And Ground Lead The First Half Offense

Starting with the ball, a sloppy drive by the Bucs resulted in their first punt of the game. The Panthers would go right to work on Tampa’s defense. Behind a big run by Cam Newton, Carolina scored the first points of the game on a field goal after a goal line stand. Back on offense, Ke’Shawn Vaughn broke loose on a 55-yard touchdown run to pull the Bucs ahead 7-3.

Jordan Whitehead put a halt to the Panthers next drive when he intercepted a tipped ball by Shaq Barrett. Capitalizing on the turnover, the Bucs pulled their lead to seven after a Ryan Succop field goal. After a change at quarterback for Carolina, Sam Darnold found a wide open receiver for a 63-yard completion. Yet another goal line stand by the defense limited the Panthers to just three points. On the ensuing drive, the offense drove to the 25-yard line, but couldn’t convert on third down leading to a 10-3 lead.

A three-and-out by the Panthers gave the Bucs the ball back with under two minutes remaining in the half. On the first play of the drive, Brady found a streaking Cyril Grayson for a 62-yard catch-and-run. Cam Brate scored from four yards out three plays later. An offsides call on the extra point moved Tampa to the one yard line, where they unsuccessfully attempted a two-point conversion. After another stop by the defense, the Bucs knelt out the half with a 19-6 lead.

Bucs Defense Closes Out The Game

The Bucs defense picked up right where they left off in the first half, with a third down sack of Newton. A 20-yard return on the punt by Kenjon Barner set the offense up around midfield. Brady and the offense marched down to the Carolina four yard line, but couldn’t punch it in and settled for a field goal and a 22-6 lead. Another third down stop, this time on a Vita Vea sack, forced the Panthers to punt again.

Led by a first down run by Brady, the Bucs scored on their next possession on a 7-yard run by Jones. The Tampa defense continued to look stellar. Carolina’s offense had nowhere to go on a fourth down stand and turned the ball over on downs. A tipped pass on third down would force a punt by the Bucs. But they would get the ball back after another turnover-on-downs by the Panthers after a sack by Kevin Minter.

Already on the Carolina 45-yard line, the offense moved 15 yards in four plays to set up a Succop field goal and a 32-6 lead. Carolina last efforts at points were consistently thwarted. The Panthers drove to a first-and-goal on the Bucs backup defense, but couldn’t score before time expired.