DeAngelo Williams' touchdown with 29 seconds left
in the fourth quarter was the difference, as Carolina kept Tampa Bay winless
with a 28-21 decision at Raymond James Stadium.
Williams ended with a game-best 152 yards and two scores on 30 carries for the
Panthers (2-3), winners of two in a row after dropping three to start the
year.
Jonathan Stewart posted 110 yards and a touchdown on 17 rushes to pick up Jake
Delhomme, who completed only 9-of-17 passes for 65 yards, one score and two
interceptions.
Cadillac Williams gained 77 yards and one TD on 16 carries for the Buccaneers
(0-6), who haven't begun a season by dropping six in a row since starting 1985
by losing nine straight.
Josh Johnson threw for 147 yards and a pick on 11-of-17 passing while Sammie
Stroughter added three catches for 65 yards and a 97-yard kickoff return for a
score in the loss.
Tampa knotted the game with 8:33 to play as Tanard Jackson had a clear lane to
intercept a pass over the middle and race 26 yards for a touchdown.
However, the Panthers drove 80 yards and used up more than eight minutes of
the clock to walk away with the victory.
Williams gained 12 yards over the first two plays of the drive, then Stewart
converted a pair of third downs to further the march. Williams picked up
another first down with a five-yard gain on 2nd-and-4 from the Tampa 17 just
after the two-minute warning, then converted a 3rd-and-1 from the Bucs' three
before taking it in on 1st-and-goal from the one for the go-ahead score.
Following the kickoff, Johnson was sacked, but his fumble was recovered at
the Buccaneers' nine. On second down, Johnson hit Kellen Winslow, but the
subsequent lateral to Stroughter failed after only 15 yards as time expired.
The Bucs jumped out to an early lead, completing their first possession of the
contest on Williams' 20-yard run to the end zone.
Carolina countered early in the second quarter when Williams broke free for a
20-yard TD run and 7-7 tie, and the game remained deadlocked until halftime.
Jeff King's one-yard TD catch on Carolina's first possession of the second
half put the Panthers ahead 14-7. The drive was set up when Thomas Davis
picked off Johnson and raced 24 yards to the Bucs' 12.
Stewart added a 26-yard touchdown run to put the visitors ahead by 14 points,
but Stroughter raced 97 yards on the kickoff for a 21-14 game.
Game Notes
Carolina has won 10 of the last 13 meetings, including six of the last seven
in Tampa...The Panthers outrushed the Bucs 267-124...Both teams fared well on
third downs, with Carolina going 8-for-14 and Tampa Bay converting 6-of-11.
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