As MVP chants rain and Panthers soar, Bryce Young refuses to make it about himself
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As Bryce Young settled into victory formation, ready to kneel and subsequently seal one of the best performances of his career to date, the fourth-year quarterback couldn’t help but hear it.
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“M-V-P!” the crowd sang.
“M-V-P!”
It was the second time he’d heard it on Sunday evening. But this one was special. It punctuated a 32-26 win over the Lions that not only put the Panthers atop the NFC South but also more broadly delivered the Panthers legitimacy, injuries be darned.
The sacred letters were also thunderous. Deafening. They enveloped the delirium that was Sunday night in Charlotte — and were meant for a quarterback that maintained his lead over the rest of the NFL in passing yards thanks to his stat-line: 29 of 41 for 329 yards and two touchdowns for a passer rating of 110.7.
And yet, as the chants rained and his teammates soared, Young refused to do something that he was entitled to do in the moment.
He refused to make Sunday night about himself.
“I heard it,” Young said, acknowledging the moment with a smile. “In the moment, you just focus on executing and trying to move the team. Obviously a huge blessing — the support. And I mean the Bank tonight was electric. They caused some false starts. They made it hard on them. And when the Bank’s rocking like that we take a lot of pride in that. I’m super, super grateful for the fans.”
The earnest Panthers fan wouldn’t be all that surprised by this. This is how Young has been through his tumultuous years in Carolina. Young has always said the “right” things. The “safe” things. It’s how he handles praise, handles criticism, handles questions about which knee he injured the week before. (”It’s one of the knees,” he said, jokingly but also very seriously, when asked about the specifics of his injury status this past week.)
Still, amid all the glory that was Sunday, surely he’d indulge just a little. Right?
Wrong.
“Again, I’ll be honest, in the moment, I was just thinking about trying to get the next play off,” Young said. “It’s still fresh. So obviously the support is a huge blessing. I’m super grateful for this community and the fan base. It’s been amazing being out here.”
Requesting such introspection felt fair, though.
After all, even though he didn’t want to address it, such a transformation felt symbolic to a career that’s seen everything. In some ways, it meant everything.
It was on this very field, four seasons ago, when Young first heard the boos. They might have been directed at head coach Frank Reich, or an overmatched offensive line, or whatever else was in the air that contributed to that league-worst 2-15 season. In the melee, the No. 1 overall pick that year, the quarterback that gave the city hope and the Panthers’ owner Super Bowl aspirations, never strayed.
It was on this very field — and other fields across the country — when Young heard the cheers for someone else, too. Two games into his second season (and his first with head coach Dave Canales), Young was benched for veteran quarterback Andy Dalton. The news flooded the sports world. People from across American culture, from Baker Mayfield to Rod Wave to LeBron James, had an opinion about it. Again, as opinions swirled, Young never got off message.
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“Tomorrow we’ll go in and see what we can do better,” Young managed from in front of his locker in Chicago, when he played spot minutes for Dalton in a blowout in that 2024 game. “But every game in the NFL is important. So you gotta have that mindset.”
Such is the Young experience. Some don’t get too high or too low. Young balances his emotion on a razor’s edge every time, without exception. It’s frustrating and commendable and foolish and professional.
What’s also the Young experience? At least part of it was encapsulated on the field Sunday night.
Young completed his first 11 passes. He had a command over an offense and an ownership of a gameplan that featured a ton of Tetairoa McMillan in the quick game — run-pass options — and in the long game. He had the toughness and wherewithal to handle a lot of pressure and still thrive. He wrung out a massive game from McMillan when the Lions could key in on him, with Jalen Coker and Xavier Legette out, even when he and McMillan didn’t have the best week of practice, according to Canales. Young played his best when the Panthers absolutely needed him to — specifically on a third-and-14 throw to McMillan, that required a beautiful throw but also a fingertip catch.
On Sunday, Young threw for over 300 yards for a second time in 2026; that made him the first QB in team history with 250-plus passing yards and a touchdown pass in each of the team’s first four games. Another bit of history, via Panthers communication: Young now has nine touchdown passes, the most by a Panthers QB in the team’s first four games of a season in franchise history; the previous high was eight held by Kerry Collins in 1998 and then Jake Delhomme in 2007.
Young now leads the league in passing yards (1,268), completions of over 25 yards (13) and yards under pressure (411), among other categories, according to Next Gen Stats.
Said Lions head coach Dan Campbell postgame: “Nothing that Bryce did shocked me today. Bryce is a hell of a quarterback, man. He just is. He’s dangerous. He’s got a quick release. … He was tough, tough today.”
And through all that, Young didn’t budge.
His teammates did, though.
And that’s part of the Young experience, too.
“His road to where he is now has been incredible,” said McMillan, his second-year receiver and favorite target. “He’s elevated every single year, and he comes in with the same mindset every day. His authenticity is really special. He’s the same guy every day. He treats everybody the same, and he comes to this building wanting to be great, and that’s all you really can ask for in your captain and your leader.”
Starting guard Robert Hunt agreed.
“He lets them know, man,” Hunt told The Charlotte Observer. “At the end of the day, we are a team. It’s going to take all of us to get to where we want to go. But he’s going to be a huge part of it. But right now he’s doing his thing, man.”
Hunt added: “He got confidence, though. And once you got confidence in this league, you can do anything.”
Read more What Carolina Panthers coach Dave Canales said after 32-26 win against the Lions
This story was originally published October 5, 2026 at 5:00 AM.
