The good, bad and ugly from Buccaneers' 23-20 loss to Panthers

It didn’t seem possible that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers could lose three straight divisional games to fall out of first place in the NFC South, but here we are.

A lackluster performance on Sunday, filled with mental mistakes and execution errors, led to a 23-20 loss to the Carolina Panthers and a drop to second in the NFC South standings. It was the worst-case scenario for the Bucs, who, despite their losing streak, still have a shot at the playoffs and the division crown. However, the way this team has been playing, it feels like they don’t want to play postseason football.

In what started as a positive showing with a red zone stop and a touchdown to take the lead, things quickly unraveled from there. A lack of protection and penalties stifled the Bucs' passing game, while the rushing offense did what it could against a stout run defense. Defensively, it was the same lapses in coverage by different players and a lack of four-man pressure that spelled doom for the Bucs. This loss might’ve signaled the end of the Todd Bowles era in Tampa Bay. Here’s the good, bad and ugly from the Bucs' loss to the Panthers.

Good

WR Mike Evans

Evans did what he could, but with a run-heavy game plan and poor protection along the interior, he wasn’t able to make the impact he’s capable of statistically. He still came down with the team's first touchdown and drew a huge defensive pass interference call to set up Sean Tucker's touchdown.

The Bucs’ rushing attack

The Bucs' three-headed monster of Bucky Irving, Rachaad White and Sean Tucker ran for a combined 119 yards rushing, 15 yards receiving and a touchdown. Irving had some big runs on the opening drive, picking up two first downs, including a 12-yard scamper to the one-yard line to set up Evans' touchdown. White had an explosive 39-yard run himself, and his 13-yard grab on third-and-six in the red zone to the one-yard line helped set up Sean Tucker's one-yard plunge into the endzone in the third quarter to give the Bucs a temporary 17-13 lead.

LB SirVocea Dennis

Dennis has rebounded well since returning from injury. He had good coverage in the red zone on the Panthers’ first drive to force a field goal and had an 8-yard sack on the second drive with two quarterback hits. He added a half sack with Lavonte David on Bryce Young in the fourth quarter.

K/PR Kam Johnson

Johnson kicked off the game in a big way with a 37-yard kick on the Bucs' opening drive. The return gave the offense great field position and helped set up a touchdown to take a 7-3 lead in the first quarter. Later in the fourth quarter, Johnson responded to a Panthers' scoring drive with a 44-yard return on the kickoff in the waning seconds of the third quarter to give the offense excellent starting field position.

K Chase McLaughlin

McLuaghlin is mister dependable for the Bucs, and that didn’t change this week. McLughlin hit a huge 50-yard field goal in the fourth quarter to tie the game at 20; however, it wasn’t enough, and he never got the opportunity to kick a potential game-tying kick after Mayfield threw the game-sealing interception.

Bad

Benjamin Morrison

Morrison was tested early on by the Panthers on their opening drive and was beaten by Tetairoa McMillan for a first down. He rebounded on the drive and had moments where you could see the potential, but there were moments he looked outmatched. He was stiff-armed by Xavier Legette to pick up a first down on third down and was beaten by him the play before, but Legette stepped out of bounds before completing the catch. Morrison was beaten again by McMillan late in the fourth quarter for 34 yards on third down. Three players later, the Panthers kicked the game-winning field goal. Morrison also committed a defensive pass interference penalty on the play, but it was declined.

CB Jamel Dean

Dean played well for nearly the entire game, but one play was enough to make the difference on Sunday. Right before halftime, with twelve seconds remaining, Young launched a 22-yard pass to McMillan, who got the step on Dean in the back of the endzone, and all Dean could do was watch the Panthers take a lead into the half.

QB Baker Mayfield

Mayfield wasn’t terrible, but missed some big throws in a game where the team needed them most. Offensive Coordinator Josh Grizzard also went with a ground-and-pound game plan that led to Mayfield throwing only 26 attempts, despite having his full stable of receivers healthy. Now, some of it was also on a porous interior offensive line and penalties backing them into down and distance situations, but his pick in the fourth quarter, where the Bucs had a chance to tie or win the game, is inexcusable. Last week may not have been on Mayfield, but this week was.

Ugly

Offensive Line

Pressure issues up the middle continued to rear their ugly heads on Sunday, but the Bucs also picked up several penalties along the o-line.

Center Graham Barton has not taken the jump in his second year that the team had hoped, and he had several tough plays on tape on Sunday. A bad snap early in the game was foreshadowed by an illegal blindside block penalty and a tough sack on a pivotal third-down call in Panthers territory. Barton was bulldozed into Mayfield's lap, leading to a sack and him landing in the dirt. Left guard Michael Jordan played well at times, but at other times, he was bullied. Right guard Dan Feeney is not an NFL-caliber starting guard and was repeatedly abused by Derek Brown.

To make matters worse, even the Bucs' long snapper got into the mix with a holding call on the Bucs' punt late in the fourth quarter.

RT Luke Goedeke

Luke Goedeke was a mess on Sunday, committing four penalties. It started with a false start call during the team’s two-minute drive before halftime. Two plays later, he picked up an ineligible man downfield call that led to a punt. The Panthers went on to take the lead before the half. He picked up another false start call in between a disastrous holding call in the fourth quarter on a Baker Mayfield scramble that picked up 26 yards with the Bucs offense backed up at the 12-yard line, putting them in a 3rd & 16 situation.

Four-Man Pass Rush

At this point, the Bucs' pass rush is laughable. If it’s not coming from an inside linebacker or defensive back, it’s not getting home. The Bucs had several opportunities to finish pressures with sacks and just could not get the job done. Yaya Diaby had a decent game, but the depth at the position and the Haason Reddick experiment have failed the Bucs this season.

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