Grading Every Position Group in Panthers' Stunning Upset of Lions on SNF

Not every unit thrived despite a major primetime win

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Week 4 has come and gone, and the Carolina Panthers might just be the biggest story of the weekend, specifically QB Bryce Young and WR Tetairoa McMillan. Carolina beats the Detroit Lions in an offensive battle, winning 32-26 and improving to 2-2 entering the bye week.

While the win was exciting and brought a ton of momentum to the franchise, it wasn't a perfect performance all around.

Some position groups excelled, while others presented opportunities for the Lions to mount a comeback and win. Below are the grades for each of Carolina's position groups in the Panthers' victory over Detroit.

Quarterbacks: A+

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If there was one negative to point out, it was that Young threw 6 consecutive incompletions at one point in the second half. Other than that, it was perfection. Young was poised, used subtle movements to evade pressure in the pocket and find his targets, and showed what elite ball placement and anticipation look like from a QB.

Running Backs: A-

Chuba Hubbard was outstanding, scoring the first touchdown of the game and his longest touchdown run of the season thus far. The 15-yard score was just the start. Hubbard finished with 20 carries for 122 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

Averaging 6.1 yards per carry, Hubbard found gaps, broke loose for chunk plays, and tough yards through tacklers for 7-yard gains. AJ Dillion got five carries and rushed for 2 yards, which is essentially nothing, so the grade bumps down just a tad bit since the RB2 produced 7 total yards.

Wide Receivers and Tight Ends: A

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The best performance of Tetairoa McMillan's young career, and it's not close. 14 catches, 192 receiving yards, and 2 touchdowns. The stats are one thing, but McMillan's greatness came at crucial moments, especially the viral 3rd-and-14 right-sideline catch in the fourth quarter.

John Metchie III made some nice catches in the middle of the field, as did Brycen Tremayne and TE Darren Waller. All three pass catchers averaged 12+ yards per reception, meaning they made highly effective plays in the game.

Offensive Line: B-

This grade could be even higher, given that the line deals with major injuries, but a B- is fair. What made Young's performance that was so special was that he produced that well while constantly under pressure. Pressure came early and often from Aidan Hutchinson, but who doesn't he get home against? That's one of the best pass rushers in football.

The good grade especially stems from the run blocking; as mentioned before, Hubbard averaged 6.1 yards per carry on 20 attempts, and the Panthers will gladly take that 10 out of 10 times.

Defensive Line: C+

Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs didn't take over the game, didn't gash the Panthers with any huge explosives, so thats a win in itself. Gibbs rushed for just 46 yards and 1 touchdown, holding a top two running back in the league to under 50 yards rushing is great.

Carolina could've been better in the pass rush; Jared Goff was sacked only once for a 6-yard loss. Goff often had time to find his open receivers downfield and finished the night throwing for over 400 yards. Goff isn't very mobile, so if pressure did come then he'd likely go down or at least throw more incompletions.

Linebackers: C+

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Devin Lloyd's return was much needed, as he posted 9 tackles, 1 TFL, and 1 QB hit. Stopping the run is arguably what Lloyd is best at, and he got to Gibbs multiple times to prevent huge plays. Bobby Okereke was just solid, posting 7 tackles and not making no back-breaking mistakes.

Neither linebacker got burned on any play or made a critical mistake; it was just a solid effort all around.

Secondary: F

Losing both Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson looks like a huge problem. Akayleb Evans was targeted 15 times and surrendered 12 catches for over 200 yards and 1 touchdown. That can't happen again if Carolina wants to keep winning. As for Will Lee III, he wasn't a detriment to the team like Evans was, but he wasn't spectacular either.