18. Carolina Panthers
Bryce Young against the Atlanta Falcons this past weekend, with a bit of a bum ankle, was out of his mind good. The Carolina Panthers needed overtime to get a much-needed win to keep pace with the Bucs (which they did), but Young did his part. The former #1 overall pick may have just played the best game of his NFL career, throwing for 448 yards, three touchdowns, no interceptions, and getting nine different receivers involved in the passing game.
But beyond Young’s outstanding performance, beyond the fact that this was a divisional win, the Panthers came away from the weekend with a nice twofer, maybe even a threefer because they beat the Falcons and the Bucs lost in Buffalo.
This puts the Panthers tied in the win column with Tampa Bay at six wins apiece, and they’re creeping right up. It’s been a lot of fun to watch this team at times this season, but they’ve been frustratingly inconsistent. We’ll see if they can stack with a tough road matchup next week against the 49ers.
17. Pittsburgh Steelers
Mason Rudolph stepped in for Aaron Rodgers after Rodgers hurt his left arm/wrist, and did a phenomenal job. Maybe this is going a little too far with it, but it really feels like Rudolph’s game has grown substantially over the past handful of years. He’s done well with limited opportunities.
Still, the situation with Rodgers is worth keeping an eye on going forward. The Steelers took care of business against Joe Flacco and the Cincinnati Bengals, building on their overall lead in the AFC North and doing it in very “Steelers” fashion. We saw Kyle Dugger make a big impact after he was acquired from the Patriots at the trade deadline, picking off a Flacco pass and taking it back for six.
The Steelers got a huge game this week out of Kenneth Gainwell, especially in the passing game. He caught seven passes including a pair of touchdowns.