There are no moral victories in the NFL, but there's also no denying that the Carolina Panthers are getting better every week, even if they keep losing. On Sunday the Panthers were underdogs by two touchdowns on the road against the Philadelphia Eagles, and they came within just one play of upsetting them. That's the third-straight week the same dynamic has applied.
While it's frustrating to see the team keep losing in close, agonizing fashion it's impossible not to be impressed with how far they have come over these last couple of months. Since Bryce Young returned to the lineup this has been a completely different team. Reflecting the rise of their young quarterback, the Panthers are more confident, more capable and seemingly able to compete with just about any team in the NFL right now.
As is appropriate, Carolina's near-miss against the hottest team in the league has earned them another bump in Vinnie Iyer's weekly NFL power rankings at The Sporting News. Iyer has them at 25 this week, up one spot from last week.
TSN on ranking Panthers 25th
"Bryce Young has done plenty to show the Panthers he's their keep as a No. 1 overall pick franchise QB for 2025, even in tough losses to the Chiefs, Buccaneers, and Eagles."
To be sure, the Panthers are just a couple of missed kicks and a drop away from having a five-game winning streak going right now. They'd be 6-7 and in the thick of the NFC playoff race despite an atrocious start to the season. Instead they're 3-10 and still in line for a high draft pick next year.
What's become clear is that this team has two roster needs that are above and beyond the rest: first, they need to get Bryce Young more receiver weapons who can actually catch the ball. Second, they need another monster run stuffer inside to help out Derrick Brown. If Carolina can manage to address both of those issues in a meaningful way this coming offseason we might be looking at a playoff team.
