Buccaneers Let Another One Slip Away: Who’s Most to Blame After Costly Loss to Panthers?
Another week, another missed opportunity for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers - and this one stings more than most. A 23-20 loss to the Carolina Panthers on Sunday marked Tampa Bay’s sixth defeat in their last seven games. With the NFC South title still technically within reach, the Bucs now find themselves needing to win out - including a Week 18 rematch with these very same Panthers - just to punch a playoff ticket.
This wasn’t a case of being outclassed. It was a game Tampa Bay had every chance to win. But once again, costly mistakes, questionable decisions, and untimely penalties turned a winnable afternoon into another frustrating chapter in a season that’s slipping away fast.
Let’s take a closer look at three key figures whose performances - or decisions - played a major role in Sunday’s letdown.
Luke Goedeke: A Rough Day at the Office
Luke Goedeke has been one of the more promising stories on Tampa Bay’s offensive line since transitioning to right tackle. But Sunday was a step in the wrong direction - and a big one.
Goedeke was flagged four times, and each penalty proved costly. Whether it was stalling a drive or putting the offense behind the sticks, his mistakes came at the worst possible times.
In a game with playoff implications hanging in the balance, the Bucs needed their offensive line to be sharp. Instead, Goedeke’s miscues helped grind the offense to a halt during key moments.
When you hand out a four-year, $90 million contract, you’re banking on consistency and reliability - especially in games like this one. Goedeke has had solid stretches this year, but this performance will be one he and the coaching staff will want to forget quickly. The Bucs can’t afford another outing like that from their right tackle with the season on the line.
John Bullock: A Costly Mental Mistake
John Bullock’s path to the active roster was one of those underdog stories fans love to root for - undrafted free agent, bubble player, earns a spot thanks to special teams hustle. But those stories only hold up when the play matches the opportunity.
Late in the fourth quarter, with Tampa Bay trailing by three and needing every inch of field position, Bullock committed a critical error. After a kickoff, he headbutted a Carolina player - a clear-cut unnecessary roughness penalty that pushed the offense back half the distance to their own goal line.
It’s the kind of mental lapse that simply can’t happen - especially not in that situation. With the division on the line and the game hanging in the balance, field position was everything. Bullock’s penalty didn’t just hurt the team on the stat sheet - it was a momentum killer and a self-inflicted wound in a game where there was zero margin for error.
For a player still trying to cement his role, these are the moments that can define - or derail - a career.
Josh Grizzard: Predictability is the Enemy
When Josh Grizzard took over offensive play-calling duties after Liam Coen’s departure, the expectation was that he’d keep the Bucs’ offense humming. But so far, the results have been inconsistent - and Sunday’s game plan didn’t do him any favors.
Tampa Bay’s offense was painfully predictable against Carolina. At one point, 17 of their 22 first-down plays were runs - that’s a 77% run rate. In today’s NFL, predictability on early downs is a recipe for stalled drives, especially when you have a quarterback capable of spreading the field and a deep, talented receiving corps.
The most head-scratching moment came in the second quarter, when the Bucs marched inside the Panthers’ 5-yard line. With Mike Evans, Chris Godwin Jr., Emeka Egbuka, and Jalen McMillan all active - a rare full-strength moment for the receiving group - Grizzard opted to run the ball on first, second, and third down. Three plays, no touchdown, and the Bucs settled for a field goal.
That kind of conservative play-calling might fly if you’re protecting a lead or leaning on a dominant run game. But in a tight contest where every point matters - and with a full arsenal of pass-catching threats - it felt like a missed opportunity to get creative and attack mismatches.
Grizzard doesn’t need to reinvent the wheel, but he does need to break out of the early-down rut. The Bucs have too much talent on the perimeter to be this one-dimensional, especially with the season on the line.
The Bottom Line
The Bucs are still alive in the NFC South race, but they’re running out of lives. Sunday’s loss wasn’t about being overmatched - it was about self-inflicted wounds, mental mistakes, and a game plan that didn’t put the offense in position to succeed.
There’s still a path to the playoffs, but it’s narrow - and it starts with cleaning up the kind of errors we saw against Carolina. If Tampa Bay wants to make a run, they’ll need sharper execution, smarter decisions, and a little more boldness from the sideline.
Time’s running out. The margin for error is gone. And if the Bucs want to avoid watching the postseason from home, they’ll need to play like it - starting now.