3 Winners and 6 Losers from Carolina Panthers' Frustrating Loss vs. Bears

The Carolina Panthers opened the season at home against the Chicago Bears with an admittedly shocking (for a good reason) performance. The offense was incredible. The defense was decidedly not, and some late mistakes led to a wider margin on the scoreboard than the game actually was. Who were the winners and losers?

Winner: Bobby Okereke

Bobby Okereke makes his presence none quick. Forces a fumble that Will Lee picks up. Panthers offense takes over at the Bears 42-yard line.
— Kassidy Hill (@KassidyGHill) September 13, 2026

If nothing else, Bobby Okereke's first series of the season was proof enough that his signing, though late, was well worth it. He forced a fumble on the second play of the game, totally turning the tide after it looked like the Bears weren't going to have much of a struggle moving the ball.

Loser: Run defense

The Panthers were helped out by some silly holding penalties that negated some big runs early on, but they looked out of sorts in the run game. With all due respect, D'Andre Swift is a very flawed running back, but he looked more like Barry Sanders out there. The run-blocking was strong, and Swift made defenders look bad. A poor effort all around. Five rushing touchdowns is absurdly bad.

Winner: Bryce Young

Early takeaway from Brad Idzik: play-sequencing is night and day. That was my biggest issue with the #Panthers play-calling for the last two years.
— Jared Feinberg (@Jared_NFLDraft) September 13, 2026

It is no secret that Week 1 has always been unkind to Bryce Young. The Panthers QB is 0-3 in openers, and he hasn't remotely looked good in any of them. We believe this is partially because the preseason isn't treated with the right respect to prepare. Still, a great Week 1 outing is a huge deal for Young.

Loser: Jimmy Horn Jr.

Horn calls for the fair catch, but muffs the punt. Bears recover at the CAR 28.
— Sheena Quick (@Sheena_Marie3) September 13, 2026

Jimmy Horn Jr. is only on the team because he provided a little bit more on special teams than the other WRs who got cut. And in the second quarter, Horn muffed a punt with momentum clearly shifting, and it changed the game. Trevor Etienne being hurt put Horn in a position to succeed, and he fumbled it. Literally. He's fortunate he didn't fumble a really good return later on, too.

Winner: Brad Idzik

Carolina Panthers offensive coordinator Brad Idzik on the field before the game | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Aside from the odd call here and there that felt wrong, it was an excellent debut for Brad Idzik the play-caller. He did not look like someone who'd never done it before. The sequencing between plays was excellent, and he did exactly what we all had hoped he'd do when the change was announced.

Loser: Tetairoa McMillan

Those who believed that Jalen Coker was secretly WR1 did not look foolish in Week 1. It was the Coker show, so as much as this is McMillan being dubbed a loser, it's also that Coker's a winner, making McMillan suffer by default. A late fumble by McMillan did not help things whatsoever. It effectively ended any hope of a comeback.

Loser: Panthers DBs

The Panthers defensive backs did not play well. They got beat on a few big plays, though that's not crazy when facing Caleb Williams. But when Williams scrambled, they either did not even turn to look or were completely unable to get off the block. On a crushing scramble, Tre'von Moehrig got blocked and seemed to just meander out of the back of the end zone while Williams ran for a score.

Loser: Jonathon Brooks' RB1 status

The Panthers are, or they were and wanted to be, a run-heavy offense. That was not the case today. The passing offense was so good that there wasn't any reason to even bother with the running backs for a lot of it. But when they were able to have success on the ground, it was Chuba Hubbard, not Jonathon Brooks. He was a weapon in the passing game, but it's still Hubbard's backfield.

Loser: Ejiro Evero

For a brief bit in the second quarter, it looked like Ejiro Evero was going to have a decent day. He'd adjusted well to Ben Johnson, but that quickly ended. At some point, the players being out of position or missing plays comes down to coaching, and the Panthers' defense was horrific on Sunday.

Add us as a preferred source on Google