Was Week Four a Glimpse of the Future for the 2026 Panthers?
MVP chants filled Bank of America Stadium as quarterback Bryce Young knelt twice, solidifying a staple win for the Carolina Panthers. Young finished with 329 yards through the air, bringing his season total to 1,268, the most in the league and a franchise record for passing yards through the first four games of a season. The 32-26 win over the Detroit Lions not only begs the question of when Carolina will extend the former Heisman Trophy winner, but also whether these good times are what is to come in the Queen City. The Panthers enter their Week Five bye with a 2-2 record, but they have their sights set on a second straight season as NFC South Champions.
A good receiver can complement a quarterback in ways that cannot be written, and Young’s complement last night was second-year wideout, Tetairoa McMillan. The reigning Offensive Player of the Year hauled in 14 catches for 192 yards and added two touchdowns. At six-foot-five, McMillan poses as a jump-ball threat, but last night he proved to be more than just a red-zone target. The former Arizona Wildcat caught eight passes in-between the numbers, much in part due to how well Brad Idzik used the run-pass option. This trickery on the playcalling side of things led to open space where ‘T-Mac’ was able to rack up yards after the catch, as well as opening things up for running back Chuba Hubbard, who ran wild for 122 yards and a pair of touchdowns. His hard-nosed, tough running style earned him over 30 snaps, carrying the ball on 20 of them.
This fun team does have weaknesses, though. The Panthers struggle to stop teams through the air. Last night, Lions quarterback Jared Goff tallied 400-plus yards. The week before, they conceded two brutal touchdowns to Deshaun Watson and the Cleveland Browns. What is different, though, is the culture that head coach Dave Canales has built in Charlotte. It is about steadily improving every week. The Panthers are not a team to be reckoned with. They are nearly impossible to keep up with offensively, and their defense, when healthy, seems to get better every Sunday, a defense that held superstar running backs Quinshon Judkins and Jahmyr Gibbs to a combined 116 yards, over 200 less than what Carolina gave up in Week One against the Chicago Bears rushing attack. Carolina also held Bijan Robinson to just 72 yards in Week Two.
Entering the Bye Week, the earliest possible week to have a bye in the NFL, the Panthers know what needs to happen defensively. The team needs to apply more pressure on quarterbacks and would really benefit from seeing some starters return to the field. When Victory Monday ends and the high of a Sunday Night Football win fades, the squad will look to use the time off to get healthy and regroup. Their Week Six game is set to be played at Lincoln Financial Field against the Philadelphia Eagles. Kickoff is set for 1:00 p.m. EST. If the Panthers can replicate their performance from Week Four offensively, they could very well be sitting at 3-2 and lead in the division.
