TAMPA, Fla. — Scoreboard watching is a lot easier when all the scores are posted on the electronic board.
But for the longest time Sunday, the Bucs brass decided not to illuminate the 49ers at Rams game, which was being played at the same time in Los Angeles. A win by the 49ers and Bucs would give Tampa Bay the No. 2 seed in the NFC.
So Bucs players were kept quite literally in the dark about that game.
The Bucs played a listless first half against the Panthers, but Tom Brady and the Bucs got it together and set some records, earning performance bonuses and winning a franchise-record 13th regular-season game.
Brady threw three touchdown passes, including two to Mike Evans in the 41-17 win over the Panthers.
The Bucs will play the Eagles in the NFC wildcard game at Raymond James Stadium next week.
Brady stayed in the game long enough to make sure players such as Evans and Rob Gronkowski hit their milestones.
By the time Brady left the game, he had passed for 326 yards and three touchdowns, giving him a club-record 43 TDs on the season and a franchise-record 5,316 yards.
No sooner had Brady left the game than the 49ers’ Jauan Jennings caught a touchdown pass from Jimmy Garoppolo with 26 seconds remaining to tie it at 24-24 and send that game in overtime. San Francisco would hang on to win 27-24, giving the Bucs the No. 2 playoff seed in the NFC.
Brady led a 92-yard drive capped by his 1-yard TD pass to Le’Veon Bell before halftime, then began the third quarter with a 77-yard march with Ke’Shawn Vaughn scoring on a 2-yard run.
Evans caught a 5-yard pass in the flat with 10:20 remaining to go over 1,000 yards receiving for the eighth straight season to start his career, extending his NFL record. But Evans injured his right arm on the play and a hush fell over Raymond James Stadium. Evans broke his own club record with his 14th touchdown reception.
About the time Evans went over 1,000 yards, in Los Angeles the 49ers tied the Rams 17-17 on a 24-yard pass from Deebo Samuel to J. Jennings.
Gronkowski entered the Panthers game needing seven catches for 85 yards to reach a $1 million performance bonus. He earned $500,000 with his 42-yard catch in the third quarter by going over 650 receiving yards for the season.
Evans returned to the game and caught a 3-yard TD pass from Brady on the first play of the fourth quarter to extend the Bucs’ lead to 24-10.
