Carolina Panthers blow lead to lose 27-21 in OT against Tampa Bay Buccaneers - NFL Recap
Carolina Panthers are at it again as another winnable game turned into a loss for the team that just cannot find a way to close out games.
The Panthers now drop down to 2-8 after a 27-21 overtime loss to division rivals Tampa Bay Buccaneers who unlike Carolina are in contention for a playoff spot.
Tampa Bay improved to 6-4 after their fourth straight win as they showed true grit to get themselves back from 21-10 down early in the fourth quarter to send the game to overtime and win it.
The Bucs had a hard time against Carolina as the home team dominated in the first three quarters but quarterback Josh Freeman further improved his burgeoning reputation by leading his team to a massive comeback victory.
Speaking after the game Dallas Clark who scored the winning touchdown in overtime said:
"We learned a lesson today that we can't just show up and win a game.”
Adding further he said:
"I hope guys will get it. We're lucky it's not a loss. I hope we go back and look at the film and say, 'Hey we didn't play well.' Sure, we played well enough to make some plays to win at the end, but to get where we want to go, that's not good enough football."
Freeman stepped up the tempo in the final stages and wrapped up the game with figures of 248 passing yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions.
For Carolina Panthers it was another disappointing ending.
A team that targeted the playoffs at the start of the year is struggling massively and desperate for a win.
However, their penchant to throw away games in the later stages came back to haunt them once again.
Cam Newton seemed to have put the game away with a 29-yard touchdown to Brandon LaFell with six minutes to go to put Carolina up 21-10.
However, Tampa Bay retaliated with kicker Connor Barth scoring a 40-yard field goal to spark the comeback.
Freeman connected with star receiver Vincent Jackson in the dying seconds with 24-yard touchdown pass while he once again passed to Jackson for a two-point conversion to send the game to overtime.
In overtime Freeman threw his third touchdown of the game finding Clark open and a 15-yard touchdown pass won the game for the Bucs.
The Panthers were irritated with the defeat and Cam Newton could not help but snap at questions from reporters.
Speaking to the media he said:
"It's been the story of our season. I'm not answering no more questions about where this one ranks."
Coach Ron Rivera also said:
"This is about as bad as it gets. The bad part is when you have opportunities to close someone out with a four-minute offense, but you can't take negative plays. That's a tough one."
The Panthers will hope to turn around their fortunes when they face Philadelphia Eagles in week 12.
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