CHARLOTTE, N.C. — There was a noticeable pep in everyone’s step Monday morning as the Carolina Panthers’ players and coaches made their way to the practice field after a week off.
The two-time, defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs might be awaiting the Panthers after their bye, but they at least returned with fresh legs and a renewed spirit after back-to-back wins before the break.
But the Panthers began noticing a change in Bryce Young’s demeanor and confidence level even before the Week 11 bye, which was among the reasons Dave Canales cited in Young keeping the starting job for at least another week.
“This is about the continued progress. It’s about Bryce looking more and more confident as he’s out there in Germany,” Canales said. “Just felt a real confidence and an aggressiveness to his play and all those things. And of course the end result — winning.”
Canales: Bryce Young will start vs Chiefs. Still weekly decision but Canales mentions Bryce’s progress and growing confidence. pic.twitter.com/ORzZsKVUti
— Joe Person (@josephperson) November 18, 2024
Young hasn’t set any passing records in combining for 297 yards in wins over the New Orleans Saints (23-22) and New York Giants (20-17 in overtime). But last year’s No. 1 pick has shown more willingness to stay in the pocket and take the occasional downfield shot than when he looked a bit shellshocked the first two weeks of the season.
“It’s kind of the things you looked for him coming into Year 2 to take the next step,” wide receiver Adam Thielen said. “Just having that demeanor around the building, in the huddle, on the field. I think you’ve seen that the last two weeks.”
A hamstring injury has sidelined Thielen since Week 3, when the Panthers beat the Las Vegas Raiders behind Andy Dalton after Young was benched. But Thielen made the trip to Munich and has watched Young shake off negative plays and do enough to win.
“He’s not letting circumstances or certain plays affect him. He’s just going out there and he’s battling,” Thielen said. “This game doesn’t need to look perfect. What you need to do is win.”
That task gets a lot tougher this week against the Chiefs (9-1), whose dreams of a perfect season ended Sunday night in Buffalo. Kansas City boasts a top-5 defense and an offense — though maybe not up to its typical standard — still led by quarterback Patrick Mahomes, a two-time league MVP who also has won three Super Bowl MVP awards.
Canales said he will continue to evaluate the quarterback position on a week-to-week basis. So it’s possible — maybe likely — that he’ll go back to Dalton at some point. But for now the job belongs to Young, and he’s in a better place than he was 10 weeks ago.
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Jonathon Brooks is playing … for real this time. We think.
When the Panthers added running back Jonathon Brooks to the active roster before the trip to Munich, most expected the rookie from Texas would make his long-awaited debut against the Giants. But concerns over the slick grass surface at Allianz Arena prompted the Panthers to hold Brooks out one more game.
Canales all but guaranteed Brooks would play against the Chiefs. That would be helpful since backup running back Miles Sanders is out with an ankle injury he sustained in Germany.
“I fully expect J.B. to make his debut this week against the Chiefs,” Canales said. “We have some practices to go through to make sure we’re ready to go there. Same thing with Thielen.”
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Assuming Brooks is green-lighted, his NFL debut will come more than a year after he tore the ACL in his right knee against TCU last November. He was among the nation’s leading rushers at the time and was the first running back drafted when the Panthers took him in the second round.
While Chuba Hubbard is expected to get the bulk of the carries, Canales said Brooks won’t be limited to a certain number of plays. “That’s the whole thing,” he said. “When you get a guy ready to play, on Sunday the confidence should be that he can go out and just play a normal football game.”
Brooks is ready for the wait to be over.
“Obviously, the competitive spirit in me is just really anxious to get out there and play football again,” he said. “Just to be able to compete with my team and just go out there and play the game that I love and do the things that I know how to do. … I think everything worked out how it’s supposed to.”
Thielen nearing a return, too?
The Panthers activated Thielen from injured reserve last Tuesday, hours before his 21-day window was set to close. Had they not done so, the veteran wideout would have stayed on IR the rest of the season.
And while Thielen is hopeful he can play against the Chiefs, he didn’t make any guarantees Monday when discussing his recovery, which he said has included a couple of setbacks.
“I’ve been trying to play the last few weeks. Just gotta let the body let me play,” he said. “I want to be out there. It doesn’t matter who we’re playing.”
The 34-year-old Thielen was Young’s favorite target last season, when he finished with 103 catches and 1,014 receiving yards. But he admits this year has been frustrating as he had a couple of issues “pop up” with the hamstring and even sought some alternative treatments he didn’t elaborate on.
“You can’t play receiver at 90 percent. You can’t play it at 95 percent. When the ball’s in the air, you’ve gotta go get it,” said Thielen, who in fact was injured while diving to catch a touchdown from Dalton versus the Raiders.
“So if your body doesn’t allow you to do that, there’s just nothing really you can do.”
In three games before he was injured, Adam Thielen caught eight passes for 109 yards and a TD. (Jim Dedmon / Imagn Images)
Reinforcements keep coming for the defense
The Panthers saw in Germany what getting edge rusher D.J. Wonnum back in the lineup could mean for the defense. The free-agent acquisition had a sack, two quarterback hits and a forced fumble against the Giants in his first game in a Panthers uniform.
They could have another pass rusher soon after opening the 21-day practice window for Amare Barno, who underwent surgery after tearing his ACL on Christmas Eve last year against the Green Bay Packers. Barno said his knee feels good, but he needs to get his football conditioning back after the long layoff.
It wasn’t long ago that cornerback Jaycee Horn was talking about the defense’s inability to make any stops. But Horn is feeling much better about things of late.
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“We’ve got some of our guys back. D.J. coming back is big. When we’ve got our guys on the field, I think the sky’s the limit,” Horn said. “We’re gonna have a big test this week, one of the best offenses in the league. We’ll see how it goes.”
Horn said adding pass rushers alongside Jadeveon Clowney is critical because of the rotation the Panthers employ at outside linebacker.
“That’s one position you’ve gotta have depth at. They don’t play every snap,” he said. “Having Barno back, D.J. back, all these guys coming back at this time of the season where it’s important — November football, December football — getting those guys back is big.”
“We’re getting healthy at the right time,” Barno added. “It’s about the second half of the season, who can win now.”
Could Christensen be the odd man out?
With left tackle Ikem Ekwonu back after missing two games with an ankle injury, super sub Brady Christensen will slide back inside to center. But he may not be the starter. Given what Canales said Monday, the Panthers could stick with Cade Mays.
“Cade has played really two solid games with Bryce. And going back with Bryce again this week, that factors into our decision,” Canales said, referring to the quarterback-center chemistry. “I can’t say enough good about Brady and what he did for us — going to center and then popping out to left tackle, which is really rare and really a valuable player for us.”
Christensen has played all three offensive line positions since the Panthers drafted him in 2021 out of BYU, where he was an All-American tackle. With free agency approaching this offseason, Christensen likely would command more money if any teams view him as tackle. But Christensen’s versatility can’t be overlooked.
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“I played center and left tackle the same game (at) Denver. So that’s valuable. That’ll last in the league,” he said. “I love playing ball. And I want to play ball as long as they’ll keep me here.”
Christensen said he hasn’t yet heard from the Panthers about a possible contract extension. But regardless of what happens this week — or in the future — he’s proud of what he’s done this year.
“Being able to bounce here and there, it’s hard. But it’s something that really helps the team. And I’m very proud of it,” he said. “I’ve stepped in and done a good job, and I’ll keep doing that going forward wherever they need me at.”
(Top photo of Bryce Young: Kirby Lee / Imagn Images)
