The Bucs came into Sunday’s game against the Panthers needing a victory to win the NFC South division. It was mission accomplished for Tampa Bay, which beat Carolina 32-9. The Bucs won the NFC South for the first time since 2007 and will host a playoff game in January. Tampa Bay’s defense had a season-high seven sacks, led by defensive end Will Gholston’s 2.5 sacks.

Here are this week’s most impressive Buccaneers:

S Jordan Whitehead

Whitehead came up with a big blindside blitz from the slot that led to a sack by Will Gholston on Carolina’s first drive. On Carolina’s third possession, Whitehead had a great interception on a first quarter pass that was deflected by linebacker Shaq Barrett. Whitehead was everyone on Sunday, and was the best player on the field from start to finish. He finished with seven tackles, three tackles-for-loss and a pick.

DE Will Gholston

Gholston recorded the Bucs’ first sack of the game when he dropped Cam Newton on Carolina’s initial series. The sack was Gholston’s third of the season, which tied his career high. He added another half sack of Sam Darnold – split with defensive tackle Steve McLendon – in the fourth quarter, then had another solo sack on the next series. Gholston’s 2.5 sacks helped him set a new career high for a season with 4.5

QB Tom Brady

Brady had another strong, efficient day against Carolina. Without top weapons Chris Godwin and Mike Evans, Brady relied on wide receivers Antonio Brown and Cyril Grayson to move the offense on Sunday. Brady hit tight end Cam Brate with a 4-yard touchdown pass to give Tampa Bay a 19-6 lead at halftime. He finished the game completing 18-of-30 passes for 216 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions. Those stats don’t take into account a dropped touchdown by Rob Gronkowski on Brady’s best throw of the game. Several drops and poor routes also hurt Brady’s raw completion percentage.

RB Ke’Shawn Vaughn

After a game to forget last week against New Orleans, Vaughn had a game to remember at Carolina. On his first carry from scrimmage, Vaughn broke a big run off left tackle, slipping two would-be tackle attempts to dash 55 yards for the first rushing touchdown of his career. That big play gave Tampa Bay a 7-3 lead in the first quarter. Vaughn finished the game with a career-high 70 yards and a TD on seven carries.

RB Ronald Jones II

Bucs RB Ronald Jones II – Photo by: USA Today

Jones was the Bucs’ workhorse back on Sunday, rushing for 65 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries as the team’s starter. He moved the pile regularly and his 7-yard touchdown pushed Tampa Bay’s lead to 29-6 in the fourth quarter.

WR Antonio Brown

With Godwin and Evans out, Brown led the Bucs with 10 catches for 101 yards. Brown returned to action after missing half the season due to a heel injury and a three-game suspension. He and Brady weren’t on the same page on every pass, but Brown proved to be the team’s best and most reliable weapon in the passing game.

K Ryan Succop

Succop was perfect on his field goal attempts and extra points on Sunday. The veteran kicker connected on a 36-yard field goal to get the Bucs on the scoreboard. Then he hit from 43 yards and 21 yards out, helping Tampa Bay build a 22-6 lead. His 48-yard field goal late in the fourth quarter pushed the Bucs’ lead to 32-9.

WR Cyril Grayson

Grayson received a lot of playing time in place of Breshad Perriman, who was on the COVID list again this week. His 62-yard catch set up Tampa Bay’s second touchdown. He finished with a career-high three catches for 81 yards and also had 14 yards on an end around.

CBs Carlton Davis III and Jamel Dean

Neither Davis nor Dean came up with an interception, but both had tremendous games in coverage. Receivers D.J. Moore and Robby Anderson were held in check all day. Before leaving in the fourth quarter with the game well in hand, Dean and Davis held Anderson to three catches for 25 yards (8.1 avg) on seven targets. Moore was held to five catches for 55 yards (10 avg.) on 10 targets.

OLB Shaq Barrett

Bucs OLB Shaquil Barrett – Photo by: USA Today

Barrett, who made his second Pro Bowl this season, had a clutch sack on third-and-goal at the Tampa Bay 8, which forced Carolina to kick a field goal to preserve the Bucs’ lead, 10-6. He injured his knee right before halftime and played the first series of the second half before leaving the game for good. The sack was Barrett’s 10th of the season, giving him two double-digit sack seasons in his three years in Tampa Bay.

NT Vita Vea

Vea recorded his fourth sack of the season, which is a new career high. His 10-yard sack of Newton came on third-and-10 and was the Bucs’ fourth sack of the day. Vea also had a huge pressure and QB hit on Darnold on fourth-and-11 in the fourth quarter to force an incompletion.

OLB Anthony Nelson

Nelson recorded his third sack of the season, which is a new career-high. He dropped Newton for an 8-yard loss on third-and-10 to force a punt on Carolina’s first possession of the third quarter.