Panthers PFF grades: Bryce Young hits new high, Jaycee Horn struggles again

It was a historic and thrilling Sunday for the Carolina Panthers, who are making a habit of showing up when they play in Atlanta. After such a big win and a big passing day, it's a good chance to check the data and see how well everyone actually played. The PFF grades paint a beautiful portrait of the offense, but not so much of the defense.

Bryce Young broke all the way out

Bryce Young has had a fairly uneven 2025 season, and the PFF grades, although sometimes curious, have more or less illustrated that. And this week, they illustrate just how incredible he was. His 87.2 grade marks a new high this year, and it's one of the best games he has ever had. He was unreal in setting the franchise record for passing yards in a game.

Jaycee Horn crashed and burned again

It's not clear whether Jaycee Horn's critical pass interference penalty, one that was a horrible call, counts against him here, but either way, he had a rough outing again. He was putrid in Week 10, and in Week 11, he struggled again. A 32.7 PFF grade is bad no matter which way you slice it, and his 36.2 coverage grade is awful. The zone-heavy game plan didn't seem to help him out much.

Corey Thornton shone

Corey Thornton was all over the field Sunday, and not always in a good way. He gave up some catches to Drake London (so did everyone else), but he had the best day out of the players who played more. He topped the defense (excluding A'Shawn Robinson, who only played 19 snaps) with a 73.3 grade, thanks to a team-high 79.5 coverage grade.

Derrick Brown has uncharacteristic stinker

The Panthers' DPOY candidate had a rough go Sunday. For most of the season, Derrick Brown has been elite, but that wasn't the case in Week 11. A 41.2 grade was tanked by an abysmal 22.9 tackling grade, as Bijan Robinson routinely made Brown and others look totally silly. Brown did virtually nothing well on Sunday, as his tackling, pass rush, and run defense grades were all below 50.

Pass-catchers ball out

Nov 16, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Carolina Panthers wide receiver Jalen Coker (18) celebrates a two point conversion in the fourth quarter against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

The passing offense was incredible, and the PFF grades largely bear that out. Tetairoa McMillan was second on offense with a 77.2 grade. Xavier Legette followed with a 73.2 grade, and Jalen Coker, Brycen Tremayne, Ja'Tavion Sanders, and Tommy Tremble all recorded better than 62.1 grades. Only Mitchell Evans and Jimmy Horn Jr. (37 combined snaps) had grades in the 50s.

Tre'von Moehrig showed up

As mentioned, the defense as a whole really struggled to tackle, but not Tre'von Moehrig. His 76.0 tackling grade was among the best on the team. He was also great on the pass rush (team-high 89.5) and strong in run defense (82.4) en route to a very solid 68.4 overall grade, third-best on the defense.

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