So near, yet so far.
The Carolina Panthers yet again fell in a tight matchup, but this one stung more versus the division rival Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Make no mistake, Dave Canales' men should have handily won this game.
Taking the two missed field goals that would have given the team a win out of the picture, there were plenty of moments where the Panthers had a real chance to seal away this game. They simply failed to capitalize on them.
It should never have come down to overtime in the first place. From poor play at the worst moments to bad officiating calls and costly mistakes, there was a lot that went into this loss. Things that have to be fixed.
This is not all on the players. The play-calling was also to blame. While the rushing attack was not exactly effective for most of the contest, throwing deep balls on second and third down with only four yards to go is questionable when you have both Chuba Hubbard and Jonathon Brooks in the backfield. Then turning around and doing the exact opposite on first-and-goal from the six is even more mind-boggling.
Carolina Panthers must stop shooting themselves in the foot in close games
Then you add in the self-inflicted wounds such as David Moore having a painful false start that led to a missed field goal. On any other day, neither of those errors from Eddy Pineiro would be a problem. But there was something in the air at Bank of America Stadium this time.
This team cannot overcome self-inflicted wounds like that.
That is the most frustrating part of this game. Just like with the Kansas City Chiefs loss in Week 12, the opposition kept gifting the Panthers opportunities to blow them out and they couldn't finish the job.
The second half was no better. With the Panthers having strong field position after another Baker Mayfield interception, they yet again crumbled near the end-zone and failed to capitalize on it.
This is without mentioning the fact that the defense wasn't exactly clutch either. They gave up massive gains to Mike Evans to set up the game-tying field goal. Everyone in the stadium knew exactly where the ball was going to go.
Even through all of this, the team still had a chance in overtime. The Panthers were in field goal range, but they wanted just a bit more yardage. And then Hubbard coughed it up.
The blame for this game should not rest on Hubbard. As I said earlier, it never should have come to this.
The Panthers had this game in so many moments and so many ways but squandered them. This team is finally growing, it is finally becoming something fans look forward to seeing on a Sunday. That is why it hurts so much.
Fans keep getting glimpses of what this team can be and where it can go if it just makes that one final leap. Yet it infuriatingly won't. They only have themselves to blame this time.
This is a learning experience for the young core of this team, yet it is worrisome when some of the biggest mistakes were from the veterans. There are lessons in anything. The Panthers have to learn how to take what the opposition gives them.
You cannot rely on mistakes to keep you in a game. When the other team makes them, you have to make the most of it. That is why the Panthers lost this game.