The Carolina Panthers fell again this week, marking their third straight defeat. Their latest loss was a reminder of several longstanding issues for this team—including atrocious pass protection, abysmal play at cornerback and little to no pass rush to speak of. (And yes, they also suffered from a bit of bad luck in the end zone andsome questionable officiating.)
On the bright side, Carolina got a bounce-back performance from starting quarterback Bryce Young. He completed 28 of his 39 throws for 276 yards, three touchdowns and one fluke interception against an elite Denver Broncos defense.
For his efforts, Young has earned a 'B' grade for the week from Brent Sobleski at Bleacher Report. Sobleski writes:
Bryce Young can't help the fact officials
replayed a turnover on a previous play after the Carolina Panthers already snapped the ball. The quarterback also can't help the fact his tight end accidentally deflected the ball that turned into a miraculous end-zone interception. He can't even help the fact his left tackle was beaten and the Denver Broncos' Nik Bonitto swiped the ball from behind to create a fumble.
The biggest issues for Young are things that he can't control—specifically the pass blocking he's gotten from left tackle Rasheed Walker and right tackle Monroe Freeling. The former was beat on the game-sealing strip-sack while the latter might've had his most troubling outing yet.
Young did an excellent job of navigating the pressure, using his feet and a quick release to mitigate Denver's pass rush. He could only do so much though—and when crunch-time came around, he could not evade the pressure that led to that rough ending.
With very little salary cap space and no real incentive to make an aggressive trade, there's not much chance at improving this unit right now. But when the offseason comes around, it may be time to clean house up front.
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This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Panthers QB Bryce Young earns strong grade for performance vs. Broncos
