Bryce Young breaks through to next tier in NFL quarterback power rankings

The Carolina Panthers were off this past week, but perceptions about this team are on the rise. The bye week was kind to Carolina in the NFC South race, as they find themselves tied with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for first place with four games to go.

Whether they end up making the NFL playoffs or not will depend a great deal on how Bryce Young performs over this final month of the season.

For what it's worth, he is trending up - performing lights out in two of his last three starts for the Panthers. As a result, Young is up four spots in this week's quarterback power rankings from CBS Sports, coming in at No. 19.

Bryce Young ranked QB19

"Bryce Young, like the Carolina Panthers at large, has been consistently inconsistent, but his last time out in Week 13, he completed 15 of his 20 passes for 206 yards and three passing touchdowns to vaporize the top-seeded Los Angeles Rams 31-28. After the Buccaneers stumbled on the Panthers' bye week, he can now lead Carolina to an NFC South division crown with a strong final four games."

To begin this crucial four-game stretch, Young is going to have to find success against a New Orleans Saints team he has struggled against badly so far in his career.

In five career starts, Young has gone 1-4 against New Orleans, totaling just 746 passing yards, a 54% completion rate, two touchdowns, four interceptions and a 61.1 passer rating.

After that, Young and the Panthers will face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers twice in three weeks, sandwiching a home game against the Seattle Seahawks. Young's numbers are better against Tampa, but he's still 0-4 in his career against them.

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