This offseason, the Buccaneers and the Panthers both drafted tall downfield targets, but in the season opener Sunday only the Panthers were able to take full advantage.In fact, early in the fourth quarter, Panthers backup quarterback Derek Anderson connected with 6-foot-5 rookie receiver Kelvin Benjamin on a 26-yard touchdown pass over 5-foot-10 cornerback Mike Jenkins that turned out to be the game-winning score. The catch, which put the Panthers ahead 17-0, was Benjamin's sixth of the day on eight targets.In the 20-14 loss, the Buccaneers targeted their 6-foot-5 rookie, Mike Evans, nine times but could not get the deep ball to him like the Panthers did with Benjamin — though it wasn't because Evans had trouble getting open.Trailing 10-0 late in third quarter, the Buccaneers missed an opportunity to hit an open Evans deep. On a 1st-and-10 from the Tampa Bay 42-yard line, the Buccaneers offense saw the Panthers in zone coverage with a single high safety.Vincent Jackson, lined up wide right, and Evans, lined up in the slot, burst through the first level of coverage and were free with only the safety to beat. The pass protection, which was shaky much of the afternoon, was solid enough on this play. But as Fox analyst and former Buccaneer Ronde Barber noted, Josh McCown simply held on to the ball for too long. His reluctance allowed Panthers defensive end Greg Hardy to close in and force a fumble, which the Buccaneers were fortunate to recover."Throwing a 50/50 ball to a 6-5 receiver, you should take it," Barber said during the broadcast.The Panthers got their takeaway just three plays later, however, when McCown lost control of the ball as he attempted to throw and instead of falling on it, forced a pass that landed in the arms of safety Roman Harper.The Benjamin touchdown came on the Panthers' next possession. Before the Hardy sack and forced fumble, the Buccaneers had a win probability of about 20 percent, according to advancedfootballanalytics.com ; by the time Buccaneers took the first snap of their next possession, it had fallen to 3 percent. Notes: The Buccaneers did not attempt a deep pass (20 or more yards) until late in the first half when McCown threw a 25-yard incompletion down the right sideline intended for Vincent Jackson. … Out of 100 total attempted passes this preseason, the Buccaneers completed one deep pass, a McCown 24-yard touchdown to Evans against the Bills. Contact Thomas Bassinger at tbassinger@tampabay.com. Follow @tbassfootball.
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