Panthers-Buccaneers on Saturday of Week 18: What We Learned from Tampa Bay's 16-14 win 

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1. Tampa Bay’s defense makes some amends. It’s been a difficult season for the Buccaneers defense, which entered Week 18 ranked 23rd in points allowed. But with their backs against the wall, the Bucs showed up. The interior held strong against Carolina’s running game to hold the Panthers to only 19 rushing yards, easily Tampa Bay’s fewest allowed all season. By shutting down the running lanes, the Bucs forced Bryce Young to take to the air in abysmal, rainy conditions. Though he found some success, especially late to make collars tight, Tampa Bay was able to bend rather than break against the pass throughout most of the contest. And when Carolina had perhaps its most momentum toward the end of the first half, coming off a TD with the ball again at midfield, rookie Jacob Parrish delivered an interception. Tampa Bay turned the turnover into three points before half, which proved just more than the difference in the final score. The Bucs offense arguably played too conservatively as the game went on after coming out hot -- it ran the ball 38 times -- but for once Todd Bowles’ defense allowed such an approach to result in a win. The 14 points given up to Carolina mark Tampa Bay’s second-best outing on the season.
2. Panthers didn’t look ready for the moment. This was Carolina’s chance to clinch its first winning season since 2017 and first NFC South title since the 2015 Super Bowl run. The division crown might still come should the Falcons win on Sunday to gift it to them, but the Panthers no longer have agency when it comes to their own fate. Fans will be quick to point out that a collection of calls went against them in the third quarter: There was an early blown whistle on a backward pass that eventually made an errant field goal tougher, officials missed a Bucs defender rip off tight end Tommy Tremble's helmet, Tetairoa McMillan saw a 33-yard first-down pick up wiped away by offensive pass interference, and on the next possession a defensive pass interference benefitted the Bucs after Carolina safety Nick Scott and Tampa tight end Cade Otton appeared to get their feet tangled. It had to be frustrating, but so was Carolina’s performance. Neither Rico Dowdle nor Chuba Hubbard averaged over 2.0 yards per carry. There was also some head-scratching play-calling, the most obvious example being a flea flicker in rainy conditions with Carolina already set up on Tampa’s 24-yard line. Dowdle slipped, still tried the toss and the Bucs recovered the fumble to preserve a 16-7 lead. Bryce Young played well outside of a momentum-crushing interception before halftime. He made it interesting late with a 40-yarder to McMillan on fourth-and-8, which set up an 8-yard TD dime to Jalen Coker two plays later. However, he ultimately couldn’t overcome failures elsewhere. The Panthers are ahead of schedule, but they weren’t quite there on Saturday.
3. NFC South will have sub-.500 champion. This was a crucial battle featuring the only two teams that can win the division, but Tampa Bay’s victory didn’t settle the NFC South. The Buccaneers still need the Saints to defeat (or tie) the Falcons on Sunday. Otherwise, the Panthers will be able to back into the playoffs via an Atlanta win. Both clubs will rue that it has come down to this. The Buccaneers seemed like the runaway favorite in the division after starting the year 6-2, only to lose seven of their last nine. The Panthers, who had alternated wins and losses since Week 7, finally dropped two in a row to conclude the regular season when a victory in either game would’ve punched their playoff ticket. It’s somewhat of an embarrassing proposition for the division that the Falcons, a team that’s been eliminated since Week 14, could potentially finish in a three-way tie for first place to send the Panthers through. Regardless, all that matters is getting into the dance. Both the Panthers and Buccaneers have shown themselves to be dangerous, albeit inconsistent, this season. One of them will look to put it together when hosting a wild-card game next week.

Next Gen Stats Insight for Panthers-Buccaneers (via NFL Pro): The Panthers, who need the Falcons to win on Sunday, have a 60% chance to win the NFC South. The Buccaneers, who need Atlanta to lose, have a 40% chance of winning the division.

NFL Research: Thanks to his fourth-quarter fumble recovery, Lavonte David joined Ray Lewis and Brian Urlacher as the only players with 40-plus career sacks and 35-plus takeaways since at least 1982.