Young accounts for 5 TDs as Panthers beat Falcons 44-38 in OT

ATLANTA — Bryce Young passed for three touchdowns, ran for two scores and led a 70-yard drive capped by Miles Sanders’ 1-yard TD run on the opening possession of overtime to give the Carolina Panthers a 44-38 win over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.

The Falcons’ playoff hopes had already ended minutes earlier when Tampa Bay rallied past New Orleans.

Rookie Michael Penix Jr. capped his late-season introduction as Atlanta’s starting quarterback with a strong game, passing for 312 yards and two touchdowns — both to Drake London, who had 10 catches for a career-high 187 yards. Bijan Robinson ran for 170 yards and two scores, but the impressive offensive performance wasn’t enough to extend the Falcons’ season.

The Falcons (8-9) and Panthers (5-12) each missed the playoffs for a seventh straight season.

Atlanta needed a win and a loss by NFC South-leading Tampa Bay to give the Falcons the division title. The Falcons entered the day one game behind the Buccaneers but would have won a tiebreaker because they swept their rivals.

Tampa Bay closed out the Saints 27-19 as the Falcons were getting ready to kick off to start overtime.

Young’s five touchdowns, including scoring runs of 2 and 10 yards, set a career high. His three scoring passes matched a career best as he completed 25 of 34 passes for 251 yards.

“Everyone understood, you know, we were playing for ourselves,” Young said, adding that coach Dave Canales “talked about finish all week. This is such a great opportunity for us to go and prove what we can do.”

Young, the 2023 No. 1 overall draft pick who was benched earlier this season, now looks like the team’s long-term answer at quarterback.

“Bryce is our quarterback,” Canales said. “I’m so proud of the way that he just took the challenge and he just grew every week.”

Penix went 21 of 38 and was intercepted once.

Falcons fans cheered in the second quarter and again at halftime as the Saints took an early lead over the Buccaneers. But as the Panthers gained momentum, the Bucs took command of the game and the division.

After placing leading rusher Chuba Hubbard on injured reserve on Dec. 28 with a strained calf, the Panthers activated Sanders (ankle) from injured reserve. Sanders rushed for 61 yards and the decisive touchdown and had three catches for 50 yards — including a 33-yard TD — in his first game since Nov. 10.

Young’s third touchdown pass, a 9-yarder to David Moore, gave the Panthers a 31-24 lead late in the third quarter. Penix answered with a 21-yard scoring pass to London in the fourth.

Carolina again took the lead on Young’s 10-yard scoring run with 4:01 remaining in regulation.

Penix, making only his third start, led the Falcons 70 yards on 11 plays, capped by Robinson’s 4-yard run for the tying touchdown with 46 seconds left.

Injuries

Panthers: CB Akayleb Evans (rib) and DE A’Shawn Robinson (calf) were ruled out with second-quarter injuries. … The defense had two starters inactive: Pro Bowl CB Jaycee Horn (hip) and LB Josey Jewell (concussion).

Falcons: CB Mike Hughes left with a shoulder injury in the second quarter after being checked for a head injury and cleared in the first quarter. … WR Darnell Mooney (shoulder) was inactive, leaving him with 992 receiving yards. LB JD Bertrand (eye) and CB Kevin King (concussion) also were inactive.

Up next

Panthers: Carolina turns its focus to offseason personnel decisions and the NFL draft as the Panthers try to end their streak of seven straight losing seasons.

Falcons: Atlanta will plan for next season with Penix while making a decision on former starter Kirk Cousins’ future.