Primetime mauling

December 9, 12:22 AMTampa Bay Buccaneers ExaminerJ.J. Rodriguez

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RB Jonathan Stewart, along with DeAngelo Williams ran crazy 

Apparently the Bucs defense forgot that they were playing tackle football, because the Panthers broke quite a few tackles (and a few Tampa-area hearts) on Monday night on their way to 299 rushing yards and 38 points, both season-high's for the Bucs defense.

Just as I suggested in my game preview, the Bucs struggled to contain the bruising backfield duo of DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart, much like they used to against Stephen Davis and Deshaun Foster whenever they faced Carolina. The Panthers racked up over 464 yards of total offense, but the story of the game was the Bucs inability to stop the Carolina rushing attack. Williams carried the ball 19 times for 186 yards and 2 TD's, while Stewart toted it 15 times for 115 yards and 2 TD's as well.

QB Jeff Garcia was haunted by dropped passes during the 4th quarter, but still managed to throw for 321 yards and 2 TD's, including an eye-popping, one-handed, back-of-the-endzone grab by WR Antonio Bryant.  Bryant finished with nine catches for 200 receiving yards and 2 TD's. The Bucs were unable to get the running attack going, mustering up only 86 yards on 24 carries.

The Bucs will have very little time to lick their wounds, as they have a shortened week before they play the Falcons in Atlanta on Sunday. The Falcons, of course, have been revived by rookie QB Matt Ryan, who has led them to an 8-5 record.

Let's just hope the Bucs can remember to tackle by next weekend.