Panthers pound Bucs, 38-23

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Given a national stage, the Carolina Panthers made a pretty good case to be included among the NFL’s top teams.

Running all over Tampa Bay with their emerging tandem of DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart, the Panthers seized control of the competitive NFC South with a 38-23 win over the Buccaneers on Monday night.

Williams rushed for a career-high 186 yards and two touchdowns, Stewart added 115 yards and two more scores and the Panthers set a team record for yards rushing for the second time in a month.

And this time it was against a team that came in having allowed only one rushing TD all season.

The Panthers (10-3) grabbed control of the division, moving one game ahead of the Buccaneers (9-4).

Tampa Bay’s Carnell “Cadillac” Williams ran for a 4-yard touchdown late in the third quarter for a 17-17 tie.

Williams’ score followed long touchdown catches from Tampa Bay’s Antonio Bryant and Carolina’s Steve Smith. It came in the same stadium where he suffered a career-threatening knee injury just four games into last season, sidelining him for the rest of 2007 and the first 10 games of this year.

Last year, Williams was hurt after taking a hit from safety Chris Harris near the Panthers’ bench after an 18-yard run. The blow forced Williams backward as his right leg bent under him awkwardly, tearing the patellar tendon in his knee.

He looked healthy on his touchdown, bouncing a short run to the right side and into the end zone to tie it with 3:37 left in the third.

But the fourth quarter belonged to the Panthers, who outscored the Buccaneers 21-6 for the win.

Smith was busy turning in his own strong performance, slipping through Tampa Bay’s secondary and into the open to haul in a 38-yard pass from Jake Delhomme that made it 17-10 with 8:19 left.

Smith had eight catches for 108 yards through three quarters.

The scoring flurry livened up a game that had few offensive bursts in the first half, with Carolina leading 10-3 at halftime on Jonathan Stewart’s 2-yard run late in the second. Both offenses eventually found room to operate, though Delhomme had thrown two interceptions to hinder Carolina’s charge.

Still, it was an improved offensive showing for the Panthers, who couldn’t run the ball in a 27-3 loss at Tampa Bay in October.

DeAngelo Williams had run for 87 yards entering the final quarter, including a 40-yarder up the middle in the second quarter that made him just the third player in franchise history to run for 1,000 yards in a season.

Stewart managed 67 yards on just nine carries, part of a 154-yard day on the ground thus far.

In the first meeting, Carolina managed just 40 yards on 20 carries, Delhomme threw three interceptions and the Buccaneers returned a blocked punt for a touchdown.

Two of the most overlooked contenders in the NFL took center stage as the NFC South got a rare night in the spotlight.