The first five weeks of the NFL season have taught us to expect the unexpected. Take Monday night’s game, for example.
At the start of the year, this looked like a pretty good matchup on paper. The up-and-coming Buccaneers led by Rookie of the Year runner-up Jameis Winston were set to face the NFC Champion Carolina Panthers and MVP Cam Newton. But instead both teams limped into Monday night with 1-3 records and without many of their top performers. Newton sat out with a concussion while Bucs All-Pro running back Doug Martin missed his third consecutive game with a strained hamstring.