Bryce Young Excites NFL Fans Despite Panthers' OT Loss to Baker Mayfield, Bucs

The Carolina Panthers lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 26-23 in overtime on Sunday, but a promising game from second-year quarterback Bryce Young left Panthers fans with something to be excited about.

The Bucs led 20-16 with just over three minutes left to play before Young led the Panthers 60 yards down the field to take a 23-20 lead. Bake Mayfield and Tampa Bay managed to drive down the field on the following drive to tie things up with a field goal.

In overtime, the Bucs missed a 55-yard field goal attempt and the Panthers had a chance to win, but a Chuba Hubbard fumble gave Tampa Bay the ball again. From there, the Bucs marched down the field and won on a field goal.

Despite the loss, Young once again looked like the player the Panthers hoped to get when they drafted him first overall in 2023. He finished with a season-high 298 passing yards, a passing touchdown and a rushing touchdown.

His performance had fans hyped on social media.

Last week against the Kansas City Chiefs, Young had 263 passing yards and a touchdown, taking the defending champs down to the wire in a 30-27 loss. He carried his momentum into Sunday's matchup and now seems to be hitting his stride.

The Panthers likely came into the 2024 season expecting to be a longshot to make the playoffs. Instead, they wanted to continue developing Young and building toward the future. Young had to spend some time on the bench earlier this year, but now looks like a completely different player than the one that struggled last year and early this season.