Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs Carolina Panthers Prediction, Preview and Odds - 12/21/2025

Game Time: 1:00 pm ET, Sunday, December 21, 2025

Venue:  Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, NC

Where to Watch:  FOX

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Buccaneers -3, Panthers +3; Over/Under:  45.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Buccaneers -3, Panthers +3; Over/Under:  45.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Buccaneers -3, Panthers +3; Over/Under:  45.5 points

Tampa Bay Buccaneers:  7-7 (1st place, NFC South)

Carolina Panthers:  7-7 (2nd place, NFC South)

Do not miss out on our expert handicapper analysis! ASA, Inc. is on a HOT STREAK in the NFL on a 6-0 NFL RUN for +$6,000 PROFIT! Make sure you check out his picks and many more from the expert handicappers featured in the Shop Picks section.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers:  lost their last game at home against the Atlanta Falcons 29-28.

Carolina Panthers:  lost their last game on the road against the New Orleans Saints 20-17.

The Buccaneers are entering this game with a 7-7 record overall and they have a 2-2 record in their divisional games too. They are 3-4 in their home games, 4-3 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be on the road for this game. They lost their last game against the Atlanta Falcons 29-28. Baker Mayfield was the starting QB and he completed 19/34 passes for 277 passing yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception. Bucky Irving led the team in rushing yards with 60. Mike Evans led the receivers with 132 receiving yards on 6 receptions. Antoine Winfield Jr. led the defense in that game with 8 solo tackles and 5 assisted tackles while Haason Reddick led the defense in sacks with 1. No one on the defense came away with an interception for them in that one.

 

 

 

The Panthers are entering this game with a 7-7 record overall and they have a 2-2 record in their divisional games too. They are 4-2 in their home games, 3-5 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be at home for this game. They lost their last game against the New Orleans Saints 20-17. Bryce Young was the starting QB and he completed 15/24 passes for 163 passing yards, 1 touchdown, and 0 interceptions. Bryce Young led the team in rushing yards with 49. Jalen Coker led the receivers with 60 receiving yards on 4 receptions and 1 TD. Nick Scott led the defense in that game with 6 solo tackles and 4 assisted tackles while D.J. Wonnum led the defense in sacks with 2. No one on the defense came away with an interception for them in that one.

The current betting odds have the Panthers listed as a 3 point underdog in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Panthers have looked good in their games this season with their 7-7 record overall which has them right near the top of the NFC North. They have looked a lot better on their home field too with their 4-2 home record this year. Meanwhile, the Buccaneers have looked good in their games this season with their 7-7 record overall which has them right at the top of the NFC South. They have been a better road team too with their 4-3 road record this year. Both of these teams have had very different paths to get to the same 7-7 record this year. The Panthers have been a really up and down team all year that hasn't been stringing together many wins or losses, and the Bucs are a team that got off to a really hot start this season, but lately they have been falling apart. They have been getting blown out by a lot of better teams lately and they are off a 29-28 loss to the Falcons in their last one, blowing a 14 point lead in the 4th quarter. The Panthers are also off a loss in their last one, losing 20-17 to the Saints when they had a chance to take the division lead. The Buccaneers are starting to get healthy now, but they have a lot of issues on defense with the number of points they have been giving up lately, and the offense hasn't looked right either. The Bucs do have the better QB, but the Panthers have the better rushing attack, and their defense has looked a lot better lately too. The Panthers have been a tough team to beat at home all season and they are used to this pattern of alternating between wins and losses so look for the Panthers to bounce back at home and pull off another upset against a Bucs team that has been sinking. The best way to place a bet here is on the Panthers to cover the spread in this game. 

Buccaneers Panthers Prediction:  Our NFL Pick for Sunday, December 21, 2025 (1:00 pm ET start time) is Panthers 24 Buccaneers 21.

Don't miss our champion handicappers free picks and expert football picks today. And if you enjoyed this Tampa Bay Buccaneers Carolina Panthers prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our weekly NFL predictions and previews.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 17-8 ATS in road games. 9-2 ATS after a loss by 6 or less points. 4-1 ATS off a loss against a division rival. 9-5 OVER in a road game where the total is between 42.5 and 49 points.

Carolina Panthers: 20-26 ATS in all games. 5-9 ATS vs. poor passing defenses - allowing 7 or more passing yards/att. 7-15 ATS in games played on turf. 17-8 OVER in all games where the total is between 42.5 and 49 points.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers:  None.

Carolina Panthers:  None.

“You don’t make excuses. You got to (bleeping) care enough where the (bleep) hurts. It’s got to (bleeping) mean something to you. It’s more than a job. It’s your (bleeping) livelihood. How well do you know your job? How well can you do your job? You can’t sugarcoat that (bleep).” - Todd Bowles after his team’s loss against the Falcons in their last game. 

“It was just a lack of execution. We’re a team that prides ourselves on the finish and we didn’t get that done today. It’s not going to feel good for 24 hours. We have a locker room full of guys who want to do better.” - Bryce Young after their loss against the Saints in their last game. 

WR Evans, Mike

WR Egbuka, Emeka

WR Godwin Jr., Chris

TE Durham, Payne

QB Mayfield, Baker

RB Irving, Bucky

WR McMillan, Tetairoa

WR Legette, Xavier

WR Coker, Jalen

TE Tremble, Tommy

QB Young, Bryce

RB Dowdle, Rico 

Passing: Baker Mayfield (2,999)

Rushing: Rachaad White (494)

Receiving: Emeka Egbuka (870)

Touchdowns: Sean Tucker (7)

Passing: Bryce Young (2,500)

Rushing: Rico Dowdle (978)

Receiving: Tetairoa McMillan (851)

Touchdowns: Rico Dowdle (7)

Coaches:

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Todd Bowles (4th season)

Carolina Panthers: Dave Canales (2nd season)