Obviously, the first thing I want to see Sunday is a Panthers win. Carolina is 3-2, has won three of its last four and has a chance to move to 4-2 against Tampa Bay.
But we're past the point where that's the only thing I'm watching.
The Panthers have looked like a different team over the last month, and now I want to see if some of this stuff is going to stick. Was the run defense the last two weeks for real? Can the offense keep rolling now that Jalen Coker is back? And please, can we get through a game without 149 yards in penalties?
Here are four things I'll be watching Sunday besides the final score.
1. Is the run defense really fixed?
I'm not ready to say it is, but I'm definitely more interested in this conversation than I was a couple of weeks ago.
Carolina held Philadelphia to 35 rushing yards Sunday and has now held back-to-back opponents under 50 yards on the ground. That's a pretty big turnaround for a defense that is still allowing 5.12 yards per carry on the season.
Now let's see them do it again.
Bucky Irving is exactly the kind of back who can tell us whether we're looking at real improvement or just a couple of good weeks. He ran for 165 yards against Dallas earlier this season and has already gone over 100 yards twice against Carolina in his career.
I'm not asking the Panthers to hold him to 35 yards. Keep him from controlling the game, don't start giving up five or six yards every time Tampa Bay hands him the ball and make the Buccaneers beat you some other way. Do that again Sunday and I'll feel a whole lot better about where this run defense is headed.
2. Let Bryce Young keep doing what he's doing
I don't need to see Bryce Young throw for 300 yards every week. I do want Carolina to keep trusting the version of Young we've watched through the first five games.
He's averaging 309.8 passing yards per game and threw for 281 yards and two touchdowns against Philadelphia. The completion percentage wasn't pretty, but I thought Young played better against the Eagles than his 20-of-39 line suggested.
We also finally got Coker and Tetairoa McMillan on the field together, and I want to see more of that. Coker had 97 yards in his return, McMillan had 86 and suddenly Young has a couple of guys on the outside who can make things happen.
Tampa Bay is good against the run, so there may be stretches Sunday where Young has to carry the offense. Fine by me. If it's working, don't get cute.
3. Can we please stop with the penalties?
Thirteen penalties for 149 yards. I still don't know how Carolina won that game.
The Panthers had eight penalties for 105 yards in the first half alone against Philadelphia. They had returns wiped out, kept putting themselves in bad situations and spent a good chunk of the afternoon making things much harder than they needed to be.
I wrote after the game that Carolina finally won the kind of game it usually finds a way to lose, and that's one of the reasons I came away encouraged. But let's not make winning that way a habit.
There are going to be penalties Sunday, and I'm not expecting perfection. Just don't make me watch another game where I'm checking for a flag every time somebody makes a big play.
4. Go play like the better team
Tampa Bay is 1-5. Carolina is 3-2, has won three of its last four and gets this game at home. That doesn't guarantee anything, especially against a division opponent, but I think we're past the point where we should be looking at a game like this and wondering if the Panthers are good enough to win it.
The Buccaneers have been competitive despite their record, and I'm certainly not treating this like some automatic win. Baker Mayfield practiced in full Wednesday and Thursday as he works his way back from a thumb injury, so Tampa Bay could have him back under center Sunday. Even if rookie Jalon Daniels gets another start, this is still a division game against a team that has given Carolina plenty of problems over the years.
If we're going to talk about the Panthers as a possible playoff team and a contender in the NFC South, games like this come with that conversation. They don't have to beat Tampa Bay by three touchdowns, and I'm not expecting them to play perfect football. Just take care of the ball, stop beating yourselves and don't spend the afternoon giving a 1-5 team chance after chance to stay in the game.
We've spent enough years watching the Panthers play down to teams they should beat. Carolina has spent the last month giving us reasons to believe this team might actually be different, and Sunday is another chance to show it.
Go play like the better team.
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