Stinkin' Panthers wallop Bucs on MNF

It's no secret. I hate the Panthers.

Carolina is the silver spoon expansion team in a group of dues-payers in the NFC South. Each of the other teams had an extended opportunity to play under the old expansion rules, rules that helped ensure that an expansion team was a long shot to achieve any type of NFL success.

Plus the Panther have proved a tough opponent for the Bucs. That fuels an excellent rivalry in which hatred of the other team has its place.

So this past Monday Night Football game does not sit well with me.

Carolina ran the ball extremely well against the Bucs. Yes, they were guilty of holding except in the eyes of the game officials, but that doesn't explain a game in which the Bucs gave up over 300 yards on the ground. Forced one punt. Allowed a third down conversion percentage that could pass for a respectable free throw average in the NBA.

The bottom line, as I see it: The teams are fairly evenly matched, as evidenced by a tight first half. Carolina's running backs are both very good, which led to an uncharacteristically poor tackling effort by Tampa Bay's defense. On offense the Bucs were able to move the ball and score reasonably well, except the running game was too inconsistent and too many passes were errant or dropped.

So a hat tip to the hated Carolina Panthers. You played better and earned the win.

And now a note on the officiating. You guys stunk. You had a terrible time marking the ball accurately, as the ESPN commentators noted on a number of occasion. You allowed Carolina to line up in the neutral zone almost as though the game was in Minnesota and you thought the Panthers were the Vikings. You changed the outcome of the game, though it's hard to know that Carolina needed any help with their offense humming like it did. Still, a holding penalty makes a big difference now and then. Just call it the same for both teams.

Oh, and one more thing. I support the illegal contact call against Ronde Barber. He stiff-armed Steve Smith off his route. That was a good call, and the announcers weren't clear enough in giving you credit after they saw the second replay. But that doesn't make up for calling Antonio Bryant down outside the two when he actually made it inside the one.

Next up, the Atlanta Falcons. This will be a good time to bounce back from a bad game.