Chants of “MVP” rang out at Bank of America Stadium during the Panthers’ 32-26 win over the Detroit Lions as quarterback Bryce Young delivered a standout passing performance. The 25-year-old leads the NFL with 1,268 passing yards and is tied for third in passing touchdowns with nine alongside Patrick Mahomes, Jared Goff and Tyler Shough. Carolina enters a Week 5 bye at 2-2, atop the NFC South, and is currently the league’s top passing offense, averaging 301.3 passing yards and 405.8 total yards per game.
While Young and the Panthers insist the focus remains on wins, the growing MVP conversation will hinge on a handful of measurable areas. Three statistical markers in particular will be closely watched as the season progresses.
Touchdown-to-interception ratio: Young has thrown two interceptions and has no fumbles lost through four games, giving him a 4.5-to-1 touchdown-to-interception rate so far this season. Of the six QBs with nine or more passing touchdowns, only Brock Purdy (one interception) and Jared Goff (zero) have fewer than two interceptions entering Week 5. Young produced a career-high 11 interceptions in 2025 — a year in which he also threw for 3,011 yards and 23 touchdowns — and is on pace this season for 38 passing touchdowns and nine interceptions.
Passing yards per attempt and aggressiveness downfield: Young is averaging 7.8 yards per pass attempt in 2026, a jump from 6.3 in 2025. His air yards per attempt are up to 8.4 from 6.2 a year ago. With Brad Idzik calling plays, Young has targeted throws of 20 yards or more on 11.1% of his attempts this season, according to NFL Next Gen Stats, up from 7.1% last season. Intermediate throws (10–19 yards) account for 24.7% of his attempts, compared with 23% in 2025.
Connection with Tetairoa McMillan and Jalen Coker: Targeting his top two receivers has produced a 118.7 passer rating for Young through the first quarter of the season. He has completed 44 of 61 passes to the duo. The weight of the MVP chants will ultimately be judged by these kinds of numbers, in addition to the Panthers’ win column.
