Sunday night, "MVP" chants rained down on Bryce Young as he led the Panthers to a 32-26 win over the Lions, his first primetime win. It was both fitting — Young threw for 329 yards and two touchdowns — and a reminder of how far he has come. Just two years earlier, he wasn't even playing in games, let alone starring in them.
He had been benched for Andy Dalton, with his chances of being an NFL starter seemingly in the balance. Young currently leads the NFL in passing yards and passing first downs. He's tied for third in passing touchdowns and seventh in yards per attempt.
For a quarterback who doesn't have a rocket arm, he sure is making the most of it: He leads the NFL in completions of 10+ yards (55) and is tied for second in completions of 20+ yards (17). And he's doing it all in far from ideal circumstances. The Panthers were without their No. 2 (Jalen Coker) and No. 3 (Xavier Legette) wide receivers Sunday.
Rookie field stretcher Chris Brazzell suffered a season-ending injury in training camp. The offensive line, also battered by injury, is giving up pressure at a 46.3% rate — only Justin Herbert is pressured at a higher rate. So, what's working for Young?
And more importantly, is it sustainable as the 2-2 Panthers look to make consecutive playoff trips for the first time in more than a decade? This offseason, Dave Canales handed play-calling duties to offensive coordinator Brad Idzik. Idzik and Canales go back to 2019, when they were both with Seattle, but this is Idzik's first time calling plays.
Still, one could have assumed it would look similar to Canales. That's where assuming can be erroneous. The Panthers currently lead the NFL in pass rate over expected and are fifth in pass percentage.
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