Carolina Panthers see Bryce Young’s growing confidence  

DONALD WATKINS | THE CHARLOTTE POST

Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young scores on a 6-yard run in a 30-14 loss Dec. 15 against the Dallas Cowboys at Bank of America Stadium. Before turning the ball over a career-high four times against Dallas, Young had shown improvement against some of the NFL's best teams.

After the Carolina Panthers’ defense held the Dallas Cowboys to a field goal in the fourth quarter last week, quarterback Bryce Young entered the huddle with 6:09 left and a mathematical chance to even the score.
All he needed to do was engineer two unanswered touchdown drives and a pair of two-point conversions. Improbable, sure, but not impossible.

Young proceeded to drive the Panthers from their 30 to the Cowboys’ 43. Four minutes 30 seconds remained as Young dropped back and spotted receiver Adam Thielen open on a slant route. A well-placed pass and the Panthers could have at least threatened a rally.

Instead, Young underthrew Thielen, and the would-be dramatic finish never developed as Cowboys safety Israel Mukuamu intercepted at the 10, all but clinching the 30-14 win.

After making significant strides during his six previous starts, Bama Bryce reverted to rookie Bryce. His four turnovers (two interceptions and two lost fumbles) were a career high. Coming off three competitive losses to playoff-contending clubs, the Panthers (3-11) and Young played down to the injury-plagued, underachieving Cowboys.

“I’ve just got to look in the mirror,” Young said during a post-game press conference. “Can’t turn the ball over like that, obviously in this league. And that's 100% on me. I got to be better; I let the team down today.”

How did Young respond during the week’s practices in preparation for Sunday’s home finale against the 7-7 Arizona Cardinals?

“Bryce is the same guy day in and day out,” tackle Ikem Ekwonu said Thursday. “Regardless of what happens on Sunday, win lose or draw, he’s going to flush it and reset and come back that much better.

“We appreciate his ability to keep his chin up and work on his game.”

Entering the Dallas game, Young completed 59.6% of his passes for 1,273 yards, seven touchdowns and four interceptions. It proved to be the 2023 No. 1 overall draft pick’s best stretch as a pro.

Promising buzz for the Panthers grew on social media. Long-suffering fans were beginning to believe in Young’s long-term promise.

The opening drive against Dallas continued fueling the trend, until Young’s first mistake of the game derailed the offense’s momentum. On the 13th play of the drive, Young initiated a play-action, rollout pass. Pressured by Micah Parsons, he spun away and dived for extra yardage. Another positive effort, but Young fumbled, creating a negative chain reaction. Young was sacked six times in the second half, rehashing images of his rookie campaign when he was sacked 62 times, nearly four times during each of his 16 starts.

Afterward, he defended the offensive line, which yielded just six sacks in the previous five outings.

“It’s not just the line,” Young said. “So, (the Cowboys) deserve their credit, but (there’s) stuff I can do better as well. Whether (it’s) getting the ball out quicker, protection, slide protections, whatever it may be. So, it’s all of us."

Despite last week’s setback, rookie receiver Jalen Coker, who scored on an 83-yard pass at the end of the first half, acknowledged Young didn’t appear shaken.

“Same thing I’ve always seen, a talented, confident football player,” Coker said. “Everyone has off days. Everyone has struggles and challenges, me included. I haven’t seen any change in him.”

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