Duck appears on the field as Buccaneers block punt, return for touchdown vs. Panthers

The Hillsborough River is not too far away from Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, and it appears a friendly creature decided to make the trip to the building on Sunday.

During the third quarter of Sunday’s Week 17 game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-7) and Carolina Panthers (4-12), a duck mysteriously appeared on the field, caught on camera by the CBS Sports crew. But the camera quickly panned back to the action, as the Panthers were lining up for a punt. Johnny Hekker had his punt blocked, and linebacker J.J. Russell scooped the ball up and took it back for six.

Duck on the field nearly stole all the shine from the Bucs' punt block and TD return 🤣🦆

"Quack quack- AND HEKKER HAS IT BLOCKED!"

More: https://t.co/DfPfbasMLcpic.twitter.com/a0xNNeUf0u

— 5 GOATs (@5GOATs_) December 29, 2024

“Quack, quack — and Hekker has it blocked!” Ian Eagle said on the broadcast.

It was that kind of day for Tampa Bay, who needed a win to stay alive in the NFC South race along with the Atlanta Falcons (8-7). The Buccaneers picked up a dominant 48-14 victory over the Panthers, their third time this season topping 40 points.

Buccaneers throttle Panthers behind prolific offensive performance

Quarterback Baker Mayfield led the way for an offense which totaled 551 yards. Mayfield completed 27-of-32 passes for 359 yards and five touchdowns for a near perfect passer rating of 153.0. Mayfield will head into Week 18 needing just one touchdown pass to hit 40 on the season.

Two of his touchdowns against Carolina went to Mike Evans. The 31-year-old wideout is looking to keep his 10-year streak of 1,000-yard seasons alive, and Sunday’s performance was on par with what he needed with still one game to go. Evans hauled in eight receptions for 97 yards, now just 85 yards away from 1,000 this season. Evans missed three games with a hamstring injury earlier in the year.