The Panthers were trailing the Atlanta Falcons 24-17 in the third quarter; Bryce Young dropped back to pass on fourth down in the red zone. He quickly fired the ball over the middle to tight end Tommy Tremble for the 12-yard score, but Young didn’t need to watch Tremble catch it. Before the pass was caught, Young turned around with his arms up to signal “touchdown” in a Steph Curry-like viral moment.

Bryce Young Has Arrived

The big moment was just one of many for the reinvigorated QB, who scored five touchdowns while leading the Carolina Panthers to a 44-38 overtime victory over Atlanta. He became the only player in franchise history to throw three touchdown passes and run for two touchdowns in the same game.

He also became the youngest quarterback in NFL history to throw for at least 250 yards, score three touchdowns, and run for two more in a single game.

Despite ending the season 5-12, Young and the Panthers have put the rest of the league on notice. When Young was forced back into the starting QB position, no one expected him to have this sort of turnaround. He made it evident that he was no longer the timid, rattled passer that everyone had come to know him as.

“I’m so proud of the way he took the challenge and just grew every week,” said head coach Dave Canales. “He just took new lessons, new things, applied it to his game, was engaged, challenging the guys… the whole thing.”

Others also raved about Young following the game. When asked about his viral touchdown, Tremble said of Young, “That’s what ballers do.” Owner David Tepper said, “I think we’ve got our QB here.” Former Panthers QB Cam Newton called Young’s performance “nasty work” in an Instagram comment. Even the aforementioned Steph Curry took to social media to sign off on Young’s work, commenting “Confirmed” on an Instagram post where the Panthers said Curry would be proud of Young.

Bryce Young Has Proven He Belongs

From the moment Carolina had the ball on Sunday, Bryce Young showed just how ready he was to send Atlanta home. His second pass of the game was a 38-yard dot to veteran Adam Thielen. Young continued to showcase his improvement throughout the game, firing pinpoint, accurate passes downfield while keeping the Falcons’ defense honest with his running ability.

The two teams battled back and forth throughout the game, ultimately going to overtime tied at 38. As Carolina quickly took the opening drive of overtime down the field, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers claimed victory over the New Orleans Saints to win the NFC South. A downtrodden Atlanta allowed the Panthers to bully their defense until running back Miles Sanders clinched the game with a TD. Sanders had a big day, netting 116 total yards and two touchdowns in his best game in years.

Young’s performance was the kind that stats alone don’t do justice. Anyone who watched him in Week 1 vs. Week 18 could say it wasn’t even the same player back there, wearing #9. As he has for weeks, Young efficiently handled any pressure thrown his way, navigating the pocket while keeping his eyes down and knowing when to pull the ball down and run.

He finished with a 73% completion percentage and 275 total yards. Perhaps more impressively, Young avoided being sacked at all and had his third consecutive game with zero turnovers.

End Of My Panthers Rant

Bryce Young’s unprecedented improvement allows Carolina to focus elsewhere in the offseason. The Panthers can now work to revamp their defense and get Young an actual number-one receiver. The pass-catching trio of Thielen, Coker, and Xavier Legette isn’t awful, but Carolina’s lack of a genuine outside threat that can win one-on-one matchups proved to be their undoing at times this season.

Having a franchise QB changes everything, and with a solid offseason, Bryce Young can help lead the Panthers to their first playoff appearance in nearly a decade next season.