The Dallas Cowboys are visiting tomorrow afternoon to face the Carolina Panthers. When the schedule dropped back in the middle of May, it looked like this matchup was going to be a daunting task for the Panthers, despite having home-field advantage. May was a long time ago, though - and both teams have evolved a great deal throughout the 2024 season. Now that we're one day away Carolina is actually the favorite to win this game.
As the Cowboys have dipped due to performance issues and Dak Prescott's season-ending injury, the Panthers are on the rise again even if their record doesn't reflect it. Carolina's def, defense has been getting hot lately, but the main cause has been the development of second-year quarterback Bryce Young.
At the beginning of the season Young was easily the worst starter in the NFL, looking totally helpless in Weeks 1-2 leading to his benching. However, since his return to the lineup we've seen a compltely different version of Young. He's grown so much that now Young is getting ranked in the low 20s and high teens compared to other starters around the league.
Young's growth is impossible to ignore for anyone who's actually watched the games, and naturally that includes Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy, who's no doubt spent a lot of time watching Young in preparation for Sunday's game. Here's what McCarthy said when he was asked in an appearance on 105.3 the Fan earlier this week about what he's seen from Young on film lately.
Mike McCarthy on Bryce Young
"I think he's really playing in a good rhythm in the pass game, but I think the biggest thing is extended plays. The scramble, he's done a really good job in the playmaking. He pretty much almost won the Philadelphia game himself during that last series... it's been real, real impressive with his poise and the way he's maximizing each snap in the passing game."
It's fair to question McCarthy's record in the postseason, especially considering the talents that he's had to work with. What is beyond question is that he's been around some of the game's most-gifted quarterbacks over the years, including Aaron Rodgers in his prime and Prescott at his best. That McCarthy is impressed with Young's surge is another sign that he's finally figuring things out.
It's going to be a long offseason, but Panthers fans can bide their time imagining what this new and improved version of Young could do with a real receiver corps.
