In a performance that capped off a season of dramatic individual improvement, Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young scored five total touchdowns (three passing, two rushing) in a 44-38 overtime victory that ended Carolina's season on a high note against the Atlanta Falcons. In tying the Panthers franchise record for the most touchdowns in a single game by a quarterback, Young looked like a far more poised and confident quarterback than he was earlier in the season -- as evidenced by one play for the offseason highlight reels.
On a fourth-and-1 early in the third quarter with the Panthers trailing 24-17, Young found tight end Tommy Tremble over the middle for a game-tying touchdown that included Young turning around and signaling "touchdown" after he released the ball and before Tremble caught it in the end zone. The celebration appeared to be a direct nod to NBA star Steph Curry -- the son of Charlotte sports great Dell Curry and a Panthers fan himself -- celebrating three-point shots before they drop.
That was too cold, Bryce.@_bryce_young @StephenCurry30 pic.twitter.com/EZwArdAj1L
— NFL (@NFL) January 5, 2025
Asked about the celebration in his post-game press conference, Young laughed off the idea that he had planned it in advance, instead attributing it to confidence in Tremble's abilities as a receiver.
"I knew he was open, so when I threw it I knew he was gonna catch it," Young said. "I don't know, it was like a reaction. I ain't never think about it."
Panthers head coach Dave Canales shared that the play run on fourth-and-1 was actually the last play that Carolina ran during an offense vs. defense period in Friday's practice. And while the play occurred at half speed Friday, it wound up developing the exact way it had been run in practice to give Young the confidence he needed to make it work on game day.
"Tommy kind of made the adjustment the same way … It's great for me, I think, when our guys know what to expect from each other," Canales said. "When they can see things happen and they feel that and we're connected that way. That's where we want to be and grow to."
Although the Panthers will finish the 2024 season with a 5-12 record and have major issues to address on defense, Young fighting back from being benched after the first two games of the season to become the sort of quarterback Carolina envisioned when it traded up to take him with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft has served as a major positive and cause for optimism throughout the second half of the season. After saying he would take a week-to-week approach at quarterback throughout Young's resurgence, Canales emphatically said post-game that Young would be Carolina's quarterback in 2025 -- a sentiment sure to be popular in the Panthers' locker room.
"He's a freaking baller, man," Tremble told reporters in the locker room. "I love Bryce."
In a career-best performance where he completed 25 of 31 passes for 251 yards and three touchdowns as well as two rushing touchdowns, Young tied the Panthers franchise record for the most total touchdowns in a single game by a quarterback. He joins Cam Newton and Steve Beuerlein in that category, and his win over Atlanta also marked his first road win as a starting quarterback.
