3 major storylines following the Carolina Panthers into Week 13 at Bucs

Something's got to give

I’m going to break some news here in this column. I hope you’re sitting down for this.

The Carolina Panthers have not been very good on offense this season, particularly in the passing game. Many point their finger at Bryce Young and many chose Frank Reich - apparently David Tepper was part of that group. Regardless of where you lay the blame, it’s a simple fact.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers, on paper, present an opportunity to make a splash in that department. Not just because of the extra juice of playing for an interim head coach, or the offense wanting to rally for Young to show he was the correct choice for this team. But because they have allowed teams to pull off chunk plays through the air fairly consistently this season.

According to Sharp Football Analysis, the Bucs have surrendered 45 passing plays of 20 or more yards - good for No. 29 in the league. The Panthers have only procured 21 passing plays of 20 or more yards - a mark that lands them at No. 31 NFL-wide.

I wouldn’t necessarily categorize this as an ‘immovable object vs. unstoppable force’ type of showdown. I’m not sure anything is happening in the NFC South that’s worthy of that kind of hype or billing, to be frank.

My interest is legitimately piqued by the idea of this perfect storm brewing and creating a rare opportunity for offensive production from Young and the Panthers' aerial attack.