Studs and duds from the Panthers' Week 18 loss to Buccaneers

5 days ago 2

The Carolina Panthers had a chance to clinch the NFC South title on Saturday. But, like on a few occasions here during the 2025 campaign, a golden opportunity was missed—this time, in a 16-14 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Despite the deflating defeat, which could very well help end their season, the Panthers did at least get a few clutch performances in Week 18.

Here are our studs and duds from the finale . . .

Dud: HC Dave Canales

A flea flicker on the opponents' 20-yard line in slippery conditions?

Canales' "aggressive" attempt came when the Panthers, down 16-7 in the fourth quarter, needed a score. Instead, it resulted in a fumble and probably erased at least three points in what was ultimately a two-point win for the Bucs.

Stud: QB Bryce Young

Save for the second-quarter interception to rookie cornerback Jacob Parrish, Young was stellar on Saturday. He completed 24 of his 35 passes, hitting nine different receivers for 266 yards and two touchdowns.

Dud: Rushing game

The Panthers rushed for just 19 yards on only 14 carries. Running backs Rico Dowdle and Chuba Hubbard both finished with 10 yards on the ground.

Studs: WRs Tetairoa McMillan and Jalen Coker

McMillan stepped up, reeling in four catches for a team-high 85 receiving yards.

Coker came through as well, most notably on his phenomenal 8-yard touchdown grab late in the fourth quarter.

Stud: DL Derrick Brown

Brown was a wall, tallying a game-high and career-high 13 tackles.

Dud: Third-down defense

Carolina covered Tampa's receivers well, but had trouble containing quarterback Baker Mayfield's scrambles. Mayfield kept a number of plays alive with his legs, rushing for 31 yards on four attempts and hurting the Panthers on drawn-out completions.

The Bucs ended up converting on eight of their 15 third-down looks, which helped them dominate the time-of-possession battle (37:25 to 22:35).

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This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Panthers vs. Buccaneers 2025: Studs and duds from the Week 18 loss

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