What Dave Canales said after Bryce Young lifts team to win over Falcons
Just about 11 months ago, the short-handed Carolina Panthers rumbled into Mercedes-Benz Stadium and stole a win in overtime.
It was the kind of win that forced everyone watching — every franchise stakeholder and NFL follower alike — to reconsider what’s possible.
On Sunday, it all happened again. And it happened in a way that somehow mattered more.
The Panthers moved to 6-5 after a remarkable 30-27 victory over the Atlanta Falcons in Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The victory saw the Panthers pull off several acts of heroism: They persevered through multiple injuries; they furnished an explosiveness in the passing game that they hadn’t yet to date; they delivered on both sides of the ball in the fourth quarter and overtime — and much more.
The win pulled the Panthers within a game of the NFC South with the division-leading Tampa Bay Bucanneers. It also means that the Panthers earned a series sweep over the Falcons for the first time since 2013.
The most important story of the day was Bryce Young. The third-year quarterback had the best day statistically of his career, and it wasn’t particularly close: 31 of 45 for 448 yards and three touchdowns for a passer rating of 123.2. He threw it short and long, over the middle and outside the numbers. He flourished under pressure and with time, on 2 ankles and 1.5 ankles. He involved Tetairoa McMillan — who finished with eight catches for 130 yards and two scores — but also everyone else, too.
In the process, he set a franchise record for most passing yards in a single game. He also earned his fourth win over the Atlanta Falcons (now 3-7) in five career tries.
Head coach Dave Canales answered to everything in his postgame press conference. Here’s a recap.
Opening statement
“Offensively, we had a couple of possessions early on that got away from us, but settled down and made the plays happen when we needed them to. And we needed all downs. We needed third down, fourth down, all of it, to get it done. But I’m just really proud of the resilience of the group to just refocus, go to the next drive, keep playing, you never know. All the way to overtime. So really proud.”
On Bryce Young playing through pain — and doing it so well
“He was dealing with some stuff, you know, it was the ankle that flared up a couple times. They checked it out, and they made sure that everything was structurally fine. And at that point, it was just a pain tolerance thing. And he gutted it out. And he wanted to do that for his teammates, and I’m just really proud of the way that he stepped in there and made the plays when we needed him to.”
Several receivers caught passes more than 20 yards. How did that happen?
“It really is about the guys and the work that they’ve been putting in. And I think I’ve mentioned before: I’m seeing the improvement in practice. I’m seeing the chemistry happen, and for whatever reason, that hasn’t showed up in the game.
“And today, we found great rhythm. It’s not always pretty, and there were some dirty pockets, but the offensive line did an admirable job of giving Bryce time. And Bryce bought a little bit of time to find guys down the field. And it just takes a couple of plays, and the guys feel the juice and the confidence to continue to go. You know, we had a couple of missed opps in the red zone as well.
“TMac had one in the back of the end zone. Xavier (Legette) had another one. He’s open in the back half. We got an uncovered guy, and AJ Terrell makes a great play and jumps up out of position to knock it down. And so there’s still a lot of things that we got to clean up, but at the end of the day, it’s about making plays. And talking to the guys like, ‘I’m not always going to call a perfect play, but at the end of the day, the ball gets snapped, there are five eligibles most of the time; find a completion, find a win. And the guys found wins in different ways.”
On team’s defensive adjustments in the second half
“Yeah, well, simply put, it was tackling in the first half. Bijan (Robinson) really just went off. We had guys in position, and he made us miss a couple of times, and that’s where we have to have the full group rallying to the ball so that if someone does miss, someone’s there to pick it up. And he picked up a bunch of extra yards that way: playing the little details. All those things were talked about at the half. And that really was the full story. It was really just about the guys getting in position and getting the guy down.”
What else can you say about Bryce Young’s day?
“To me, it’s just my expectation for Bryce to take every game plan and every opportunity and attack it, and he’s been doing that. Today was a day about the whole group. It was about all the guys, the time on task, the side conversations in practices, working together in between drives and really just making it come alive, and finding the completions where they were and extending the play when he needed to.
“I’m just proud of the way that he just pushed through for his teammates. It just speaks volumes to the type of leader that he’s continuing to grow into, and to be able to be available for his guys and find a bunch of different guys in different situations.”
What did Bryce Young say to you when he emerged from the locker room?
“He said, ‘I’m good.’ He gave me a thumbs up and said, ‘I’m good.’ I said, ‘That’s good enough for me. Let’s get him back out there.’ And Andy (Dalton) was ready, and he was warming up and ready to go for that series.
“I got to commend, you know, lead trainer Denny Kellington and the training staff for getting that thing turned around quickly and making sure we did the right thing and do the full evaluation in there to make sure that he was in the right place to go back out there because he wanted to. But I was fired up. It was like, ‘OK, let’s go.’”
‘I’m just really proud’
“I’m just really proud. I’m really proud. The challenge to the group last night is like, ‘This has to become your team.’ I love this group. I love the physical nature that we play with. I’m proud of the effort. I have been for over a year and a half now. The character of this group that just continues to fight, continues to play, and what we’re waiting for is for these guys to take it — to take the will and to say, ‘This is our team, Coach, we got it.’ And I had a bunch of guys coming out the locker room today who said, ‘We got this. We got this.’ They’re just reaffirming. And even though the Falcons had a great first half — and they made some plays in the second half to obviously to send it into overtime — this was a group that wasn’t going to quit.
“Our guys just continue to step up and say, ‘This is our team. Let’s go make this thing happen.’”
Inside the long catch-and-run by Tommy Tremble in OT
“That’s Bryce’s last progression on the play. And he evaluated it, and he got through his progressions. We got to give the offensive line credit for allowing him to take that second hitch and find Tommy (Tremble) late. And then Tommy just secured the ball and took off.
“And I’d love for him to just score on that one to get all the antics out of the way. But it was just guys being where they’re supposed to be, when they’re supposed to be there. And one of our basic, most core concepts that we’ve run a million times, the guys executed well in a critical time. And that’s what good football is about.”
On Rico Dowdle notching over 1,000 scrimmage yards for the season this week
“Yeah, just the spark, the attitude, the violence, all those things that really just enlivens the group: Guys blocking on the perimeter, guys blocking up front. The big screen at the end there — that’s something that Rico has been kind of ribbing me on for weeks now. I don’t mind telling you guys that. And, you know, they had a pressure look, and Rico executed it perfectly. And made it look like protection, got down the field, and if you had white cleats on, it might be a touchdown.
“They had a really good look at it for a while there, but he gave us a chance to go right there in the red zone and battle in the next couple of plays. And unbelievable play by Bryce to scramble and find TMac. And then the two point play was huge based on the way the game finished.”
This story was originally published November 16, 2025 at 6:39 PM.
