The Panthers traded running back Christian McCaffrey on Friday and they’re playing with an interim coach against the Buccaneers on Sunday, but they are leading the game at halftime.
P.J. Walker hit D.J. Moore for a 20-yard touchdown with 30 seconds to play in the first half for the first points of the day by either team. The Panthers held onto that 7-0 lead for the remaining seconds of the second quarter and lead 7-0 at the break.
The teams traded punts over the entire half until the Panthers found a groove on their final possession. P.J. Walker hit Moore for 21 yards to get the drive rolling and then had connections with D’Onta Foreman and Terrace Marshall for first downs on later throws.
Walker is 11-of-12 for 125 yards with 79 of the yards coming on that touchdown drive.
The Buccaneers had a golden opportunity for points on their first drive, but a wide open Mike Evans dropped a well thrown pass from Tom Brady. Brady and Evans failed to connect on a couple of other deep shots as well and the Buccaneers offense has continued to be off kilter on Sunday.