With lightning in the area, Thursday night's Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Carolina Panthers game was delayed.
The game, being played in a heavy downpour, was halted and the stadium was cleared with 8:31 remaining in the first quarter of a 0-0 stalemate in the NFC South contest.
The weather delay came at 8:39 p.m. ET and the game resumed 26 minutes later. Â
Carolina (0-1) had just gone for it on fourth down with quarterback Cam Newton coming up short and Panthers coach Ron Rivera subsequently losing a challenge on the spot. It was the end of the Panthers' first drive of the game, which began at the Carolina 10-yard line and took up nine plays.
Tampa Bay (0-1) began the game with the first possession, highlighted by Jameis Winston hitting Chris Godwin for a 22-yard gain on the initial play from scrimmage. The Bucs punted four plays later.
