CHARLOTTE, NC – Bryce Young has won three consecutive starts for the first time in his NFL career.
Now the question becomes whether he will have a chance to stretch that streak to four on Sunday when the Carolina Panthers return home to face the Buffalo Bills.
Youngย left Sunday’s 13-6 win over the New York Jetsย in the second half with an ankle injury, leaving his status for this week’s game uncertain.
Panthers coach Dave Canales said Monday he is listing Young as day to day.
โWe will look at him each day and really test the ankle in different ways to see if we can’t get him back out there (at practice) in some way shape or form on Wednesday,โ Canales said.
Andy Dalton, who replaced Young on Sunday, would start if Young canโt play. The team is exploring the option of signing a quarterback to back up Dalton on Sunday if Young is out.
Young has been improving with each passing week, so this is a hurdle in his progression as a quarterback.
The injury occurred while Young was attempting to elude a sack in the third quarter.
Whatโs working
The Panthers struggled early in the season to get pressure on opposing quarterbacks, but seem to be rectifying the situation in recent weeks.
Carolina had a season-high six sacks against the Jets just days after learning that starting edge rusher Patrick Jones would miss the remainder of the season with a lower back injury. Defensive end Derrick Brown was dominant all game, getting two sacks, while rookies Nic Scourton and Princely Umanmielen combined for two sacks.
Carolina allowed just six points in its first road win of the season, marking the fewest points allowed in a road game since giving up three points on two occasions during the 2017 season in a 23-3 win at San Francisco and 17-3 win at Tampa Bay.
What needs help
Canales said Monday he won’t change his approach at running back.
After Rico Dowdle piled up 473 yards from scrimmage the previous two weeks, Canales made the interesting call to start Chuba Hubbard over Dowdle after he returned from missing two weeks with a calf injury.
Hubbard and Dowdle then alternated possessions.
Dowdle outplayed Hubbard. Dowdle had 17 carries for 79 yards and one reception for 17 yards, while Hubbard was limited to 31 yards on 14 carries and caught two passes for 24 yards. Neither player found the end zone. It appeared difficult at time for either running back to get into the rhythm with the current system but Canales seemed to like the two-back approach.
