Bucs 20 Panthers 7 - the game report Scott Smith, Buccaneers.com, published 1 October 2007 The Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Carolina Panthers, 20-7, at Bank of America Stadium and just might have purchased the same sort of legitimacy that came from another recent victory in Charlotte. In 2005, a December visit to Charlotte's Bank of America Stadium was the Buccaneers' chance to prove they were a legitimate NFC South title candidate. The '05 Bucs did just that, upsetting the Panthers, 20-10, and taking over the division lead for good. The Bucs ventured to the same proving grounds in 2007, though much earlier in the season. Fresh off a last-place division finish in '06, the Bucs took a 2-1 record into Sunday's game against the Carolina Panthers, with a chance to take over sole possession of the South. Once again, the Bucs left Charlotte with first place and a much larger dose of national respect, courtesy of a dominating, wire-to-wire victory. The Bucs are now 3-1 and, thanks to three straight wins of 13 or more points, an unmistakable playoff threat. Unfortunately, most teams that reach the postseason can look back at good fortune on the injury front, and the Bucs had none of that Sunday in Carolina. Starting running back Cadillac Williams and left tackle Luke Petitgout suffered apparently significant knee injuries within a few minutes of each other in the first half. The prognoses for Williams and Petitgout for the rest of the season were not announced by the end of the game. The Bucs set the day's tone with a methodical touchdown drive on the game's first possession. But, as well as the game started, it was certainly a sobering moment 12 minutes in when Williams went down. He had started strong, running hard on five carries between the tackles for 23 yards. On his sixth carry, Williams broke free around right end and galloped for a gain of 18. As he slowed to take on charging S Chris Harris, Williams right leg folded under him and his body was bent backward awkwardly over the limb. The Bucs scored on that drive to take a 14-0 lead. They also moved into scoring position on their next drive only to see the scenario repeated. On a successful third-and-one run by Graham, left tackle Luke Petitgout had several players roll up on his right leg from the side, resulting in a knee injury that ended his day. Then, on the very next play, Hilliard fumbled at the end of a short catch, turning the ball over to Carolina at the Panthers' 22. That was the only miscue on the day by Hilliard, who powered the Bucs to a 17-0 lead with seven catches for 114 yards, all of them in the first half. And, even without Williams, Tampa Bay's running game was humming for the second week in a row. After riding Williams, Michael Pittman and Earnest Graham to 182 yards in a 24-3 demolition of the St. Louis Rams, the Bucs used the same three backs to pick up 189 critical ground yards on 42 carries. Graham was once again strong in relief, picking up 48 yards on 17 carries. This time, however, it was Pittman who had the biggest game, gaining 90 yards on 15 carries. The Bucs did little but run the ball after the intermission, with QB Jeff Garcia throwing just seven second-half passes. Still, it was another example of flawless game direction by Garcia, who completed 15 of 25 throws for 176 yards and a passer rating of 81.4. For the fourth time in as many starts as a Buccaneer, Garcia was not intercepted. Meanwhile, the 2007 version of Tampa Bay's defense continued to make an argument for inclusion in the pantheon of recent great Buc Ds. Carolina was held to 236 yards including just 99 net passing yards with Carr at the helm. Carr, starting for the injured Jake Delhomme (elbow), completed just 19 of 41 passes for 155 yards and finished with an anemic 54.4 passer rating. It would have been worse, but the Panthers used the game's last two minutes to drive for their only score against a Buccaneer prevent defense. Cornerback Phillip Buchanon had a sensational day in coverage of explosive WR Steve Smith, who had four touchdowns and nearly 300 receiving yards through the Panthers' first three games. Smith finished with five catches for 32 yards and never got close to breaking one of his signature big plays. Buchanon finished the game with three tackles and three passes defensed. The Panthers, in fact, didn't get inside the Bucs' 45-yard line until 1:53 was left in the game. The Bucs ran down the clock and punted for most of the half, and the defense turned back one Carolina drive after another. With the Panthers forced to pass, the Bucs finally put up a significant pass rush, with Jovan Haye, Greg Peterson and Patrick Chukwurah notching sacks. S Jermaine Phillips added his second interception in as many games and led the team with five solo tackles. Not to be outdone, the Bucs' special teams was an edge once again. Matt Bryant made both of his field goal attempts and is now six of seven on the season. Two Tampa Bay punts were downed inside the 20, including one at the four. And WR Mark Jones continues his string of impressive returns. Though he didn't have one runback longer than 20 yards, Jones picked up 71 yards on five returns, consistently giving the Bucs field position at or beyond midfield. The Bucs were in complete control of the game by halftime. In addition to their 17-0 lead, Tampa Bay had a 248-77 edge in total yards and had out-passed the Panthers, 154 yards to 26. Hilliard had 114 yards already, while Smith had just two grabs for five yards. Such strong starts are becoming commonplace for this Buccaneers team. In fact, this marked the third straight game in which Tampa Bay's defense had pitched a first-half shutout. That's a rare feat; the last time the Bucs accomplished it was over the last three games of the 1988 season. The Bucs won two of those contests, 10-5 over Buffalo and 21-10 over Detroit, both at home. However, they lost the one road game in that three-game skein, dropping a 10-7 overtime decision at New England. This time, the Bucs swept that three-game stretch and also won three straight games by double-digit margins for the first time since the team's 2002 Super Bowl season. Garcia and Hilliard powered the Bucs' first scoring drives. After Williams got six yards up the middle on the game's first play, a play-action pass to Hilliard gained 15 yards. Another 15-yarder to Hilliard put the ball at Carolina's 35, and the Bucs went into a no-huddle attack for several plays. Hilliard kept the drive moving with a gutty catch-and-run on third-and-nine from the 24, diving just past the stick between two defenders, then got the Bucs a first-and-goal with a seven-yard drag across the middle at the three. Garcia punched it in himself with a three-yard scramble – one on which he fortunately avoided the type of crushing hits he has taken on runs in recent weeks. The Panthers tried to get the quick strike answer, throwing deep down the left sideline to Smith on their first play. Buchanon kept tight coverage, however, and the pass landed out of bounds. The Bucs' defense finished up the three-and-out and forced a punt that gave Tampa Bay's offense the ball back at their own 37. The Bucs' second drive got past midfield but stalled at the 42. It was still a successful exchange in terms of field position, though, as WR Maurice Stovall got back to the goal line and was able to bat Josh Bidwell's punt back to the four rather than let it become a touchback. However, Foster's nine-yard run up the middle gave Carolina some breathing room, but the drive then stalled, thanks in part to LB Barrett Ruud's hustling tackle on a bubble-screen to Smith. Jones got 16 yards on the return and the Bucs were right back in Panther territory to start their third drive. Williams' broke off his ill-fated 18-yarder on the first play of the drive. As much as the team would like to have that moment back, it did kick start a 48-yard touchdown drive. FB B.J. Askew got 17 yards on a catch over the middle and Graham, Williams' replacement, ran up the middle for 11 tough yards. Two plays later, Graham followed a big block by TE Anthony Becht around left end for his third touchdown in the last two weeks. The Bucs' defense produced yet another three-and-out to finish the first period, and the second quarter opened with a Tampa Bay drive starting at its own 46. On third-and-five from the Carolina 49, Garcia sniffed out a blitz and quickly fired over the middle to WR Michael Clayton for a gain of 13. However, Hilliard's fumble ended this drive and Carr got the Panthers' offense moving with a momentum-swinging third-down run on which he leaped high in the air to clear two Buc linebackers and sail past the sticks. However, the defense held on the next set of downs and an early hit on Jones by CB Richard Marshall put the ball at the Bucs' 31. Two plays into the possession, Garcia threw deep over the middle to Hilliard, who made a bobbling catch on the run and ran down to the Carolina 10-yard line for a gain of 56. The Bucs couldn't punch it in this time but still tacked on Bryant's 25-yard field goal to make it 17-0 with seven minutes to play in the half. The Bucs preserved the first-half shutout, then stopped Carolina's first drive of the second half. Pittman's season-long 29-yard run put the Bucs into Panther territory on the next possession and another tough third-down run by Graham resulted in a first down at the Panthers' 35. The Bucs had to punt a few plays later, but got the ball back on the ensuing possession when S Tanard Jackson forced a fumble by Foster and Peterson recovered for Tampa Bay at the Carolina 27. The Bucs almost used that turnover to put the last nail in the coffin, but an impressive goal-line stand by the Panthers kept the home team alive. A heady eight-yard scramble by Garcia converted a third-and-six and led to a first down at the Carolina four. Three Graham runs to the left failed to punch the ball in, making it fourth-and-goal from inches away. The Bucs elected to go for it, calling a timeout first and then running Graham to the right. Big DT Maake Kemoeatu tripped Graham up shy of the goal line, giving the ball back to the Panthers. The Panthers failed to build on that momentum, gaining just four yards on three plays before punting from their five. P Jason Baker did rip off a booming, 64-yard punt, but Jones simply tacked on a 20-yard return to get the ball right back to midfield. The Bucs gained one first down on offense but stayed conservative and eventually punted down to the 15. Cato June nearly picked off a deep pass over the middle to Smith on first down and Haye sacked Carr for a loss of five on second down. On third down, Greg White provided the pressure from right end that led to an errant pass easily intercepted by Phillips at the Carolina 28. The Bucs tacked on three points from that turnover, failing to gain a first down but scoring on Bryant's 38-yarder. The Panthers' next possession ran into a fourth-and-two at the Carolina 44 and ended when Carr's downfield pass sailed well beyond any eligible Panthers. The Panthers got the ball back with eight minutes to go and this time converted a fourth down to get the ball near midfield. However, a holding call led to a punt and the Panthers didn't get the ball back until 2:55 was left in the game. Carr then directed Carolina's shutout-avoiding drive, finishing with a short flip to RB DeAngelo Williams that Williams turned into a 24-yard scoring reception. The Buccaneers are now 3-1 and a game up on the Panthers in the NFC South. Only Dallas and Green Bay, at 4-0 each, have better records in the overall conference. The Buccaneers travel to Indianapolis next while Carolina goes to New Orleans.