ESPN predicts Panthers QB Bryce Young regresses in a bad way against the Saints

Bryce Young is coming off the best game of his NFL career. Facing the league's stingiest scoring defense, he dropped three touchdowns in the Carolina Panthers' win over the heavily-favored Los Angeles Rams - including several stupendous throws in clutch moments.

Undeniably impressive as he was, the story of Young's pro career has been one of occasional flashes of brilliance amid a whole lot of underwhelming starts.

The worst of it for Young has come against the New Orleans Saints. In five starts against these rivals Young is 1-4 and has yet to put in a quality outing.

Despite the promise and the hope that his last game has inspired, one analyst at ESPN is expecting Young to turn back into a pumpkin this week. Here's what Seth Walder predicted for Young on Sunday against the Saints.

ESPN on Bryce Young vs. Saints

"Young will record a QBR under 45. Last time we saw Young, he had an excellent game in an upset win over the Rams. But it was only because of his exceptional play on third and fourth downs (QBR: 99.3). Young had only a 26.4 QBR on first and second downs. I'm always skeptical when I see a split like that: The late-down performance carries a much heavier weight in explaining the QB's contribution in that game."

This would be a disappointing turn to be sure, but at this point it wouldn't qualify as a surprise. Young's inconsistency is not entirely his own fault - the Panthers have done a pretty poor job of surrounding him with receiving talent and if their interior pass protection isn't perfect he's likely to struggle.

Still, at the end of the day Young can't always expect to get perfect pass blocking and at some point he's going to have to learn how to handle interior pressure and throw against it.

Young's best games have been predicated on moxy and a sheer gutsiness to throw the ball deep downfield no matter how much pressure is in his face - but too often Young's confidence seems to be shattered when things don't go according to plan - and the Panthers are simply not talented enough to overcome bad games at quarterback.

This game on Sunday represents new territory for Young, though.

For the first time in his NFL career he's playing meaningful games in December. Young will either rise to that challenge and start delivering positive results on a consistent basis, or he'll flounder and the Panthers will need to begin looking for their next potential franchise quarterback.

Bryce Young, Dave Canales — Dec 22, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales with quarterback Bryce Young (9) in the fourth quarter at Bank of America Stadium. | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

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