You could make a strong case that the best player to ever wear a Carolina Panthers uniform is also one of the biggest believers in the guy wearing it now. Legendary quarterback Cam Newton has never been shy about backing Bryce Young, and recently, he opened up a bit about what that relationship actually looks like.

“It’s a dynamic where I’m always here. I’ve seen Bryce numerous times. We exchange information, we text each other, and then I’m not gonna be the guy who sends a text week in week out. But if we see each other, we’re gonna have a moment. I’m here if you need me. You know that,” Newton said.

“I’ve been a Bryce Young fan since they signed him. I was always challenging him to be him, don’t try to be Cam Newton,” he added.

That approach matters. And it may explain some of what we’re seeing now. In a season built on absolute tenacity, the Panthers finally took a real step forward this week, earning a 23–20 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and showing signs of life that haven’t been there in years.

Bryce Young looked calm. The former No. 1 overall pick finished 21-of-32 for 191 yards and two touchdowns, and while the numbers won’t jump off the page, the poise absolutely did.

Young now sits at 2,691 passing yards and 21 touchdowns on the season. And this isn’t the first time Newton has taken notice. Earlier this year, Newton spoke about Young’s breakout performance in Week 12 against the Falcons, when he threw for 448 yards and three touchdowns, breaking Newton’s own franchise single-game passing record.

Newton’s mark was 432 yards, set back in his second career start.

“Earlier this year, we had quarterbacks that had to prove it this year,” Newton said. “Bryce Young was on that list. And it’s not all about wins and losses…more so than showing flashes and showing proof.”

That proof is starting to show. And as Bryce Young settles into who he is, not who he’s supposed to imitate, the Panthers are starting to look like a team moving in the right direction.

Panthers take possession of the NFC South

The Panthers are finally starting to look like themselves again, and it’s been a long time coming. This is their best season in years. Bryce Young deserves a lot of the credit, but it’s also about the way this team carries itself week to week.

That comeback win over Tampa put Carolina alone on top of the NFC South and snapped a five-game skid against the Bucs. It also gave the Panthers eight wins for the first time since 2017, the last time they were playing football that mattered in January.

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There’s still work to do. A Week 17 win over Seattle, paired with a Buccaneers loss to Miami, would hand Carolina the division outright. If not, it all comes down to Week 18 and a rematch with Tampa, winner takes all. And with how the Panthers are playing right now, you wouldn’t bet against them finding a way.

What stands out most is how steady they’ve been late in games. This team makes stops when it has to. The offense is making big plays. Young has been at the center of it, and the numbers back it up. He now has 12 career game-winning drives. Since 1950, only Justin Herbert had more before turning 25.

In their first three seasons, only Dak Prescott, Matt Ryan, and Herbert are ahead of him. That edge comes from the top. Head coach Dave Canales talks about it constantly.

“Coach talks about it all the time, finish. That’s something that we take a lot of pride in that we carry into every aspect of who we are as a team, and for us not to just talk it but to walk it, to be resilient, to go and continue to battle, I wouldn’t want to go to war with any other team,” Young said.

And if this keeps going, it might just lead the Panthers back to the postseason for the first time since the Cam Newton era.