The Panthers might not control their own destiny any more, but they are far from out of playoff contention, as even a 9-7 record might just be good enough to sneak into a wild-card spot. However, before they can start worrying about playoffs, they’ll first need to make sure they win the games in their path – or if you’ll pardon the pun, their road – and that starts this Sunday with a trip to Tampa to face a Bucs team they have already beaten this season. While the Bucs are definitely not going to be making the playoffs this season, they have beaten some good teams so far this season, and having fallen short in two very winnable games in recent weeks, the Panthers can’t afford to take anybody for granted at this point. So what do they need to do to get their first win in the best part of a month?

Secondary Concerns

When the Panthers hosted the Buccaneers earlier this season, they did an excellent job of limiting their starring pair of Evans and Jackson – thanks mostly to the play of James Bradberry and Donte Jackson; with the Panthers DJ playing and the Bucs’ DJ out with a hand injury, it will be Bradberry vs. Evans as the only matchup holding up the marquee. Where they did struggle defensively against the Bucs last time, however, was over the middle of the field – with OJ Howard and Adam Humphries both having good games. This fits the pattern for the Panthers defensively this season, as they have struggled to contain tight ends and slot receivers for much of 2018. With Howard out, expect a lot of targets for Cameron Brate, who has been the apple of Jameis Winston’s eye throughout his career – Winston has started four games this season and thrown touchdowns to Brate in two of them. He’ll absolutely be looked at in the red zone.

Some of this can be put down to bad luck, as the Panthers have faced some very good tight ends this season – some of the plays made by the likes of Howard, Eifert and Ertz were almost impossible to stop. However, some of this comes down to how the Panthers have looked to defend such players, as the Panthers appear to be reluctant to use help defenders over the middle in man coverage and this just makes it too easy for teams to attack the middle of the field. Some of the Bucs’ biggest passing plays against the Panthers in their last meeting came on inside routes against man-blitzes and while eliminating these defensive looks will not completely prevent such plays, it should hopefully force the Bucs into more difficult throws.

At the end of the day, however, the Bucs do have one of the most talented groups of offensive playmakers in the NFL, and the best tactic for stopping them is to force them into the most difficult throws possible, in particular into throws to the deep corners against man coverage – we know Jameis Winston likes to take chances. The Bucs have the talent to make some big plays in the passing game, some of which there is almost nothing you can do to stop, but if this is all they have in terms of a passing game, they are likely to find it hard to sustain drives and in so doing, minimize their offensive output. It would be foolish to think that you can shut the Bucs’ passing attack down completely, but with some smart play calling and a healthy Donte Jackson, the Panthers have a real chance of keeping them in check for the most part.