The Panthers lost to the Chiefs, but Bryce Young had his best game as a pro and the team looks to be on the up.
Bryce Young threw for 262 yards, the defense registered five sacks, and the Carolina Panthers played an all around good game but lost to the Kansas City Chiefs on a last second field goal, 30-27.
First Quarter
The Panthers won the toss and elected to kick off to the Chiefs. That kickoff was nearly housed, but a shoestring tackle by Caleb Farley saved the touchdown. After a couple of innocuous runs, the Panthers decided to not cover Noah Gray, and Patrick Mahomes found him for a 35 yard touchdown.
The Panthers offense actually responded well. Bryce Young found David Moore on a deep in on 3rd down then found Xavier Legette on a deep crosser to set the Panthers up in scoring range. The drive stalled out there, and the Panthers settled for a field goal. The Chiefs took the ball back and did pretty much the same thing after the Panthers defense bent but held in the red zone.
Young found Thielen on an underneath crosser on third down on the next drive, and a driving block by Legette gave the veteran enough space to run all the way down inside the 30. A pop pass to Deven Thompkins set the Panthers up inside the red zone as the first quarter came to close.
Second Quarter
The Panthers threw three straight passes coming out of the break, and all three landed on the turf. Eddy Pineiro kicked through his second field goal of the game.
The Chiefs drove down the field with ease and looked poised to score their second touchdown of the game, but the drive, and the game, came to a screeching halt. The Panthers looked like they had a third down stop, but Jaycee Horn’s third holding penalty of the game extended the drive. The Chiefs responded by committing a series of penalties of their own, which drove them back far enough that they ended up having to settle for a 41 yard field goal after a 3rd down sack by Jedeveon Clowney.
The Panthers had their first ineffective drive of the game after that and were forced to punt the ball right back to the Chiefs. A holding penalty on the punt backed the Chiefs up, but they were able to drive the ball out to midfield by the two minute warning. DJ Wonnum notched a sack on the first play after the two minute warning, but the Panthers let Mahomes escape the pocket on third and long to extend the drive. A few plays later, Mahomes found Gray in the end zone for his second touchdown of the game.
With 44 seconds left, history would tell you that the Panthers would run the ball and go to halftime to lick their wounds. But clearly Dave Canales felt the urgency of the deficit and the opponent, and let Young air it out. He heaved a jump ball down the left sideline to Ja’Tavion Sanders, who ripped the ball down. Young found Moore on a deep out on the next play to move the Panthers into field goal range, then found Sanders again, who was undercut on the tackle and landed on his head. He had to be taken off on a backboard. Once the game resumed, the Panthers took three shots to the endzone. None hit, and Pineiro hit his third field goal of the afternoon.
Third Quarter
Some more intermediate throws down the field and a good run by Chuba Hubbard took the ball deep into Chiefs territory. Hubbard pounded the ball to the doorstep of the goal line on a 4th and 1. Young found Moore on an RPO for a touchdown a couple plays later. The Chiefs were called for an unnecessary roughness on the Panthers’ first attempt at the 2-point conversion, but Tommy Tremble false started before the Panthers could try again. They elected to kick the extra point instead. The drive took over eight and a half minutes off the clock.
The defensive struggles continued as the Chiefs met little resistance marching down the field on a drive that featured a handful of Panthers penalties, including another one on Horn. The Chiefs picked up a 4th down with a Kareem Hunt run deep in Panthers territory. Mahomes extended a number of plays with his legs and ultimately used that trait to find DeAndre Hopkins in the endzone.
The third quarter ended with the Panthers driving once again after an incredible anticipation throw from Young to Moore with all sorts of pressure bearing down on the quarterback extended the drive on 3rd and long.
Fourth Quarter
A Chiefs personal foul moved the Panthers into the red zone. Ikem Ekwonu false started on what was going to be a 3rd and 5 to set up a 3rd and 10. The Chiefs brought pressure, and the Panthers couldn’t convert. Pineiro kicked field goal number four.
After a couple of successful plays, the Chiefs backed themselves up with a couple of penalties trying to contain Clowney. They ended up in a 3rd and 22 situation, and the Panthers dialed up a cornerback blitz. Jaycee Horn sacked Mahomes and forced the Chiefs first punt of the game. The Panthers went three and out and punted it right back.
A second down sack by Josey Jewell set the Chiefs up with 3rd and 12 with 3:37 left to play. Jadeveon Clowney and DeShawn Williams combined for another sack Mahomes to force a punt. A Chiefs penalty on the punt spotted the ball on the Chiefs 49 to start the drive.
Young found Legette down the sideline with a beautiful lofted ball on 2nd down, but the rookie couldn’t reel it in. The Panthers ended up with 4th and 3 a couple plays later, and Young found Adam Thielen for 13 yards and a Panthers first down as the two minute warning hit. On the next play, Young took a shot to the endzone intended for Thielen, and the veteran drew a pass interference. Hubbard plowed in for a touchdown on the next play. After another pass interference on the 2-point conversion, Hubbard completed the octopus with a run up the gut.
One problem—the Panthers left 1:46 on the clock. That’s too much time for Patrick Mahomes. It’s like 1:30 too long for Patrick Mahomes. After a couple of quick passes, the Chiefs quarterback broke contain and sprinted down the sideline for a 34 yard run. That set the Chiefs up close enough that they could wind the clock down to set up the game winning field goal as time expired.
Overview
This was the best game of Bryce Young’s career, and it’s probably not close. He had a similar statistical game against the Packers last season, but that was against a flailing defense that couldn’t stop anyone. This was the defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs with one of the best defenses in the NFL. Young picked them apart for 262 yards and went toe to toe with Patrick Mahomes. He was composed in the face of heavy Chiefs pressure and was letting the ball fly to let his receivers make plays. It was definitely a game to build on.
On the other side of the ball, the defense looked like an entirely different unit after a really rough first half. Outside of the last drive, which was inevitable, the defense put the clamps on the Chiefs offense. They came into the game with 12 sacks but got to the quarterback five times today. They struggled a bit with the run, but it was still one of their better halves of play on the season.
It was a loss on the scoreboard, but it was a win in our hearts. A great game for the Panthers.