Carolina
Panthers
5-5
14
FINAL
10
Tampa Bay
Buccaneers
4-6
AI Recap
AI RECAPIn a closely contested battle, the Carolina Panthers narrowly defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 14-10 in Week 12 of the 2026 season. With playoff implications on the line, both teams fought hard, but it was the Panthers who managed to secure the crucial victory on the road.
Leading the charge for Carolina was quarterback Bryce Young, who threw for 270 yards and a touchdown, showcasing his ability to connect with his receivers under pressure. Tetairoa McMillan emerged as his favorite target, racking up an impressive 129 receiving yards, while the Buccaneers' Kenny Gainwell led the ground game with 85 rushing yards.
Defensively, the Panthers made key plays, highlighted by Jaelan Phillips, who recorded 1.5 sacks, disrupting the Buccaneers' offensive rhythm. The turning point came late in the fourth quarter when Tykee Smith's interception gave the Panthers a chance to seal the game, demonstrating the importance of defensive prowess in a tight contest.
Passing
| Player | Pos | ATT | CMP | CMP% | YDS | TD | INT | QBR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bryce Young | QB | 40 | 23 | 57% | 270 | 1 | 1 | 76.0 |
| Geno Smith | QB | 30 | 15 | 50% | 115 | 0 | 1 | 45.8 |
Rushing
| Player | Pos | ATT | YDS | YPC | YAC | TD | LNG | FUM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kenny Gainwell | HB | 14 | 85 | 6.1 | 41 | 0 | 27 | 0 |
| Chuba Hubbard | HB | 20 | 74 | 3.7 | 5 | 0 | 9 | 1 |
| Bryce Young | QB | 6 | 22 | 3.7 | — | 0 | 7 | 1 |
| Geno Smith | QB | 3 | 20 | 6.7 | — | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| Sean Tucker | HB | 6 | 19 | 3.2 | — | 1 | 6 | 0 |
| Chris Godwin Jr | WR | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cade Otton | TE | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tetairoa McMillan | WR | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Receiving
| Player | Pos | REC | YDS | YPR | YAC | TD | LNG | DROP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tetairoa McMillan | WR | 5 | 129 | 25.8 | 94 | 1 | 78 | 0 |
| Xavier Legette | WR | 6 | 76 | 12.7 | 13 | 0 | 25 | 0 |
| Emeka Egbuka | WR | 5 | 37 | 7.4 | 12 | 0 | 11 | 1 |
| Cade Otton | TE | 4 | 37 | 9.3 | 18 | 0 | 16 | 0 |
| Tommy Tremble | TE | 5 | 35 | 7.0 | 11 | 0 | 12 | 1 |
| Chris Godwin Jr | WR | 3 | 31 | 10.3 | 7 | 0 | 12 | 0 |
| Jayden Reed | WR | 1 | 9 | 9.0 | 6 | 0 | 9 | 1 |
| John Metchie III | WR | 2 | 9 | 4.5 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| Chris Brazzell II | WR | 1 | 8 | 8.0 | — | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| Mitchell Evans | TE | 1 | 4 | 4.0 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Jakob Johnson | FB | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | — | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Chuba Hubbard | HB | 2 | 2 | 1.0 | — | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Kenny Gainwell | HB | 1 | -2 | -2.0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Defense
| Player | Pos | TKL | SACK | INT | FF | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benjamin Morrison | CB | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tykee Smith | SS | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Bobby Okereke | MIKE | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Jackson | CB | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Rueben Bain Jr | LEDG | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Jacob Parrish | CB | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Antoine Winfield Jr | FS | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Josiah Trotter | MIKE | 4 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Derrick Brown | DT | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jaelan Phillips | LEDG | 2 | 1.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Devin Lloyd | WILL | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Micah McFadden | MIKE | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Javon Bullard | SS | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lee Hunter | DT | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vita Vea | DT | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Demonte Capehart | DT | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ifeatu Melifonwu | SS | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chau Smith-Wade | CB | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Alex Anzalone | WILL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Yaya Diaby | REDG | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jaycee Horn | CB | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Tre'von Moehrig | FS | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Calijah Kancey | DT | 0 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nic Scourton | LEDG | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tyrel Dodson | WILL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Zyon McCollum | CB | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Kicking
| Player | Pos | FGM | FGA | XPM | LNG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chase McLaughlin | K | 1 | 2 | 1 | 52 |
| Ryan Fitzgerald | K | 2 | 3 | 0 | 34 |