There wasn’t much room for optimism after Sunday’s collapse, and the numbers behind it are brutal. The Carolina Panthers were thumped by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 43-13, and the loss added another ugly chapter to a pattern that keeps resurfacing under head coach Dave Canales.
The most damning detail is this: the Panthers are 0-6 when entering a game with a winning record under Canales. That stat checked out, and the six games paint the same ugly picture over and over again.
Week 8, 2025: 40-9 loss versus the Buffalo Bills (entered 4-3)
Week 10, 2025: 17-7 loss versus the New Orleans Saints (entered 5-4)
Week 12, 2025: 20-9 loss versus the San Francisco 49ers (entered 6-5)
Week 15, 2025: 20-17 loss versus the New Orleans Saints (entered 7-6)
Week 17, 2025: 27-10 loss versus the Seattle Seahawks (entered 8-7)
Week 7, 2026: 43-13 loss versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (entered 3-2)
That’s not just a bad run. It’s a recurring crash every time the Panthers have a chance to build on momentum.
They’ve gone from being the team that couldn’t post winning records in consecutive seasons to the team that can’t even string together winning games. It’s become a Sisyphean task just to stay above water.
The margin of defeat across those six games is 17 points on average, which is a touchdown more than the Panthers averaged on offense in those matchups. They scored 10.8 points per game in those losses, a number that tells the story almost as clearly as the record itself.
There’s no easy way to spin what happened Sunday. Offense was terrible, defense was putrid, and special teams were grotesque.
Still, it only counts as one loss, and the Panthers won’t have to sit on it long. They’re back in action Thursday night against the Green Bay Packers.
Until then, keep pounding.
In Other News...
Panthers Suddenly Have A Trade Deadline Problem In The Secondary
The Panthers have spent the weeks leading up to the trade deadline looking for help at cornerback after injuries hit Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson, and the market has already started to come into focus. ESPN has tied Carolina to a pair of possible targets in Riq Woolen and Donte Jackson, giving the team at least a couple of paths to patch up a position group that has suddenly become a concern.
Woolen would bring the bigger upside if Carolina wanted to swing for impact, even if there are obvious questions attached to his play. Jackson, meanwhile, would offer a more familiar kind of solution and could help stabilize the spot sooner rather than later. Either way, the Panthers appear to have a real deadline decision to make if they want to keep the secondary from becoming an even bigger issue. [Read more 🡒]
Panthers Secondary Just Took Another Hit Before Jordan Love Test
The Panthers secondary took another blow this week when Akayleb Evans was placed on injured reserve with knee and triceps injuries, knocking him out for Sundays matchup with the Packers. Evans had stepped into a starting role over the last three games, giving Carolina some needed stability in a back end that has already been stretched thin by injuries to Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson.
Now the Panthers are heading into Week 8 with even less margin for error against Green Bay and quarterback Jordan Love, who has been productive through the air this season. For a defense already trying to patch together its coverage plan, losing another corner only adds to the pressure to find answers quickly. [Read more 🡒]
Panthers Secondary Suddenly Faces A Brutal Test In Green Bay
With the Panthers heading into Thursday nights game in Green Bay, the secondary has been thinned to the point where roster depth is now part of the weekly game plan. Carolina is elevating veteran cornerback Marco Wilson from the practice squad as the injuries continue to pile up, leaving the team with just two healthy cornerbacks on the active roster.
Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson are on injured reserve, while Akayleb Evans is sidelined with injuries, and the challenge does not stop there. The Panthers will also be without pass rusher Jaelan Phillips and left guard Damien Lewis, adding more pressure to a short-handed group that is about to be tested under the lights against the Packers. [Read more 🡒]