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A weight lifted off Panthers Bryce Young, members of much-maligned offense after victory

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — About a half-hour after Eddy Pineiro nailed a 23-yard field goal as time expired, quarterback Bryce Young walked into the interview room wearing something seldom seen during a tough rookie season.

A smile.

“Hello, everybody,” Young said. “It feels great. These are a lot more enjoyable after wins.”

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Nothing has come easy for the Carolina Panthers offense this year.

So it was very on brand that their second win — 9-7 against the Atlanta Falcons — came on a Sunday when they failed to score a touchdown while playing in relentless rain in a stadium about a quarter-full. But they’ll take it.

That's a walk-off‼️ pic.twitter.com/MuLRuZDY2D

— Carolina Panthers (@Panthers) December 17, 2023

The fact that several maligned members of the offense — beginning with Young — keyed the game-winning drive made it all the sweeter.

“He’s a winner,” interim coach Chris Tabor said. “Think about that drive he put together, that all those kids put together in those conditions. And people might say nothing to play for. There’s a lot to play for. Because whatever’s on tape, that’s who you are.”

Much like their only other win, versus the Houston Texans on Oct. 29, the Panthers (2-12) took the ball at the end of the game and didn’t give it back. With Young completing 5 of 5 passes for 68 yards, the Panthers went 90 yards in 17 plays and took the final 7:35 off the clock before Pineiro’s game winner.

It was the Panthers’ fourth win in team history without a touchdown and tied for their lowest point total in a victory.

The narrative surrounding Young this season is the No. 1 pick hasn’t received much help. But he received a lot of it on the final drive, from receivers Jonathan Mingo and DJ Chark making big catches, the offensive line protecting him, and offensive coordinator Thomas Brown doing a nice job mixing the run and pass.

It helped snap a six-game losing streak and seemed to lift a weight off Young, who described the game-winning drive similarly to how the former Alabama QB has discussed his last-minute drive against Auburn in the 2021 Iron Bowl.

“Where else would you rather be?” Young said. “Opportunity to go down and win the game. For me, there’s no other group I’d rather do it with. We all have faith in each other. We all believe in each other. It was just a great opportunity.”

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It was an opportunity provided by the defense, specifically safety Xavier Woods, whose interception of Desmond Ridder deep in Carolina territory kept it a one-score game.

Tabor handled the elements like he was back in the NFC North, leaning on the defense, special teams and run game. The former Chicago Bears assistant called timeout at the end of the first quarter so punter Johnny Hekker had the wind to his back. He also had linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill squib two kickoffs into the wind to have another defender against Falcons returner Cordarrelle Patterson.

But after the Panthers took over at their 5-yard line following Woods’ pick, Brown showed faith in Young and the offensive line by dialing up some longer pass plays. Young was up to the task, hitting tight end Tommy Tremble for 19 yards, finding Mingo for 20 on third-and-3 and lofting a jump ball to Chark, who made a great play to catch it at its highest point and get his feet inbounds for an 18-yard pickup.

“Those weren’t easy catches out there,” Tabor said. “I was really proud of our guys really concentrating and making those plays.”

Chark, who’s had only one game this season with more than three catches, said Young was in a zone during the 90-yard drive.

“And when he’s in a zone, let him deal,” Chark said. “(It was) big time because we came into the game with the mindset of run. But with the game on the line, we had to throw. And he did a phenomenal job out there. Hats off to him. I’m really happy for him. That’s my brother, and I’m glad he was able to go out there and really dice it up the way he did.”

But Young wouldn’t have been able to chop up the Falcons defense without protection, something that has been in scarce supply for much of the season. Atlanta’s Calais Campbell sacked Young on the second play of the last possession, but it was nullified by a holding penalty on cornerback Clark Phillips III (versus Adam Thielen).

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After that, it was all clean pockets for the 5-foot-10 quarterback.

“Definitely a lot better (protection) than past weeks, for sure. That was definitely an emphasis we had this week,” said left tackle Ikem Ekwonu, who has struggled through parts of his second season.

“Especially in the rainy conditions, making sure the pocket’s clean, making sure Bryce doesn’t have to scramble too much back there. He can just sit back and throw the ball,” Ekwonu added. “And obviously, when he has the time, he’s great. So that’s something we’re gonna keep on doing.”

Jonathan Mingo caught four passes for 32 yards Sunday for the Panthers, including a 20-yard reception on third-and-3 on Carolina’s game-winning drive. (Bob Donnan / USA Today)

Mingo, the second-round pick from Ole Miss, has dealt with some route-running issues during his rookie season. But Young said Mingo ran a “great route” on an over pattern out of a bunch formation on third-and-3 from the Panthers’ 37.

“Got match coverage, ran a great route and made it easy for me. Did a great job coming back to the ball, too,” Young said. “In a big-time moment like that, seeing Mingo step up — not surprising at all, but it was great. It was key.”

Mingo, who has seen his targets increase since Tabor replaced Frank Reich, said the receivers haven’t let the public criticism bother them.

“We don’t care what nobody else got to say. All we’ve got in the room, that’s all we need. Everybody’s gonna support each other. Every receiver’s got each other’s back,” he said. “So we could care less what anybody says. We know what we can do. So when our name’s called, we just go out there and execute plays.”

It was one game against a team with a history of folding. Atlanta’s last four losses have come after an opponent drove more than 70 yards and scored in the final 31 seconds.

But it was something for the Panthers to feel good about it — and not just Young.

“We all go through tribulations in our life, whether it’s early in our career, late or in the middle. He’s just going through something right now,” Chark said. “But he stays and fights.

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“We’re all going through something. Everybody’s situation is a little different. But it’s not roses for anybody. So hats off to him and hats off to other guys in this locker room that continue to fight.”

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(Top photo: Grant Halverson / Getty Images)

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Artie Phelan

Update: 2024-05-19