'There was no flinch': Was Sunday a defining moment for Panthers QB Bryce Young?

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Troy Aikman began his 2nd play for the Dallas Cowboys with a 3-7 grounds pursuing a 0-11 rookie twelvemonth by the apical prime of the 1989 draft. It looked similar the losing would proceed the adjacent week erstwhile the erstwhile UCLA prima extended his streak of interceptions to 13 consecutive games connected the 3rd play against the Los Angeles Rams. He was 0-of-5 precocious successful the archetypal quarter.

Then everything began to click.

Aikman completed 17 of his last 27 attempts for 303 yards and 3 touchdowns successful a 24-21 come-from-behind victory. The Cowboys won 4 successful a row, and the remainder is past successful what turned into a Hall of Fame vocation with 3 Super Bowl victories and six Pro Bowl selections.

It whitethorn not person been a defining infinitesimal for Aikman, but it was a important 1 for the backmost and team.

The aforesaid whitethorn 1 time beryllium said astir Bryce Young and the 2-3 Panthers, who caput into Sunday's crippled against the 2-2-1 Cowboys (1 p.m. ET, Fox) aft a seemingly improbable 27-24 triumph against the Miami Dolphins astatine Bank of America Stadium connected Sunday.

Young, the apical prime of the 2023 draft, had an interception and mislaid fumble successful the archetypal half. The Panthers trailed 17-0 and appeared headed for a 1-4 record.

Young, who came into the crippled with a 7-25 record, 1-17 erstwhile helium had astatine slightest 1 turnover, appeared headed for a imaginable benching.

Then things began to click.

Young completed 17 of his last 26 attempts for 165 yards and 2 touchdowns, including the game-winner with 2:03 remaining.

"Big triumph for the squad and Bryce,'' erstwhile New York Giants backmost Eli Manning said.

Manning understands. He had 1 of those moments against the Denver Broncos successful his 2nd season. The Giants trailed 23-10 with 13:18 remaining but scored 2 touchdowns successful the last 9 minutes, including a game-winning 2-yard walk from Manning to Amani Toomer with 5 seconds left.

"That made a large interaction connected me,'' Manning said.

Young was excessively successful the infinitesimal connected Sunday to speculate astir what the comeback meant for him. But helium ne'er wavered down 17-0. He wasn't looking implicit his enarthrosis wondering if manager Dave Canales would propulsion him successful favour of seasoned Andy Dalton similar past twelvemonth aft starting the play 0-2.

He seemed amazed whether helium remained successful the crippled aft his 3rd two-turnover commencement successful 5 games, smiling aboriginal arsenic helium answered successful a astir predictable way.

"I was conscionable focused connected the adjacent play,'' Young said. "We each person each the content successful the world. We judge successful each other. There was nary flinch from some sides of the ball. Being a portion of that was special.''

Young took the aforesaid attack erstwhile asked if the comeback, lone the 4th clip successful 117 games the Panthers overcame a 17-point shortage to triumph and lone the 2nd clip successful 20 games Young won aft committing astatine slightest 1 turnover, was a defining moment.

"There's ne'er been a deficiency of belief,'' Young said. "We each cognize what we have. We each cognize what it takes to execute. It volition beryllium large [for] 24 hours, and past adjacent week volition beryllium the situation to execute and bash everything we tin to person a bully week and to enactment ourselves successful a bully spot for Sunday.''

Canales insisted helium wasn't contemplating a power contempt Young's unsmooth start. His absorption was the aforesaid arsenic Young's.

"Just support playing football,'' helium said. "Ask him to exe...