Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young had a disastrous start to Sunday’s game against the Arizona Cardinals. Then the former Alabama All-American turned the game around with a second-half touchdown flurry before the magic ran out in the final two minutes of a 27-22 loss.
Carolina trailed 27-3 when it took possession for the first time in the second half. Young had lost a fumble that Arizona recovered for a touchdown on the third snap of the game and, hit while passing, had thrown an interception on the Panthers’ second possession.
But Young led consecutive drives of 76, 88 and 76 yards as he completed 24-of-33 passes for 217 yards with three touchdowns to open the second half. Young threw TD passes of 4 yards to wide receiver Hunter Renfrow with 2:06 left in the third quarter, 5 yards to running back Chuba Hubbard with 5:05 left in the game and 1-yard to Renfrow with 1:58 to play.
Carolina failed on 2-point conversion attempts after two of the touchdowns as it cut the lead to five points.
“Just showing the fight of this team,” Young said of the comeback. “A team full of guys that are going to play to the last snap, are going to always believe, always fight. I’m super, super proud to be a part of that.
“Then, obviously, don’t want to be in that position to start with.”
The Panthers recovered an onside kick at their 49-yard line after the Young’s third touchdown pass. Carolina went to the line of scrimmage 13 times on a possession that featured three penalties against Arizona (including one that nullified a fumble recovery) and two against Carolina (including a holding penalty that wiped out an 11-yard completion and intentional grounding against Young). Young went 0-of-5 on the series before a fourth-down sack sealed the game for the Cardinals with 26 seconds to play.
For the game, Young completed 35-of-55 passes for 328 yards with three touchdowns and one interception. He reached career highs in completions, passes and passing yards in his third three-touchdown game.
“I have all the confidence in the world in this team, this group,” Young said. “We know we have the right stuff. Just early on, not giving ourselves a chance. That part is, you know, it’s frustrating now.”
Young was among the 45 former Alabama players who got on the field on the second Sunday of the NFL’s 106th season.
Five other former Alabama players were involved in the Carolina-Arizona game:
Panthers defensive end LaBryan Ray (James Clemens) is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
A’Shawn Robinson started at defensive end for the Panthers. Robinson made one tackle.
Dalvin Tomlinson started at nose tackle for the Cardinals. Tomlinson made two tackles and recorded one tackle for loss.
Jonah Williams started at right tackle for the Cardinals.
Mack Wilson (Carver-Montgomery) started at inside linebacker for the Cardinals. Wilson made eight tackles, registered one quarterback hit and broke up a pass.
In the other Sunday games:
Baltimore Ravens 41, Cleveland Browns 17
Browns wide receiver Isaiah Bond had a 6-yard reception and a 9-yard run.
Browns running back Jerome Ford ran for 31 yards on six carries, 23 yards on five receptions and 81 yards on four kickoff returns.
Derrick Henry started at running back for the Ravens. Henry ran for 23 yards on 11 carries. Henry entered the game averaging 118 rushing yards in his 20 appearances for Baltimore, but his output on Sunday was half his previous low with the Ravens.
Marlon Humphrey (Hoover) started at cornerback for the Ravens. Humphrey made three tackles and broke up one pass.
Jerry Jeudy started at wide receiver for the Broncos. Jeudy had four receptions on 51 yards.
Cincinnati Bengals 31, Jacksonville Jaguars 27
Jordan Battle started at safety for the Bengals. Battle had four tackles and one interception. Battle picked off Jacksonville quarterback Trevor Lawrence and returned the interception 4 yards to the Jaguars 30-yard line. The takeaway led to a field goal that cut Jacksonville’s lead to 14-10 with 3:28 left in the first quarter. Battle intercepted one pass in each of his first two NFL seasons. Two games into his third season, he has two interceptions in 2025.
Bengals wide receiver Jermaine Burton was designated as a game-day inactive.
Bengals center Seth McLauglin is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Dallas Cowboys 40, New York Giants 37 (OT)
Tyler Booker started at right guard for the Cowboys.
Trevon Diggs started at cornerback for the Cowboys. Diggs made four tackles.
Cowboys wide receiver Traeshon Holden is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Giants offensive lineman Evan Neal was designated as a game-day inactive.
Detroit Lions 52, Chicago Bears 21
Terrion Arnold started at cornerback for the Lions. Arnold made six tackles and broke up one pass.
Brian Branch started at safety for the Lions. Branch made six tackles, recorded the third sack of his career, had two tackles for loss, registered one quarterback hit, broke up one pass and forced one fumble. Branch caused Chicago running back D’Andre Swift to fumble and Detroit recovered at the Lions 30-yard line on the next-to-last play of the first quarter to preserve a 14-7 lead.
Jahmyr Gibbs started at running back for the Lions. Gibbs ran for 94 yards and one touchdown on 12 carries and caught three passes for 10 yards. Gibbs scored the game’s first points on a 6-yard run with 12:13 left in the first quarter. Gibbs had a 42-yard run in the third quarter.
Jameson Williams started at wide receiver for the Lions. Williams had two receptions for 108 yards, the fourth 100-yard game of his career. Williams had receptions of 44 and 64 yards, with the former going for a touchdown as Detroit took a 38-14 lead with 6:22 left in the third quarter.
New England Patriots 33, Miami Dolphins 27
Christian Barmore started at defensive tackle for the Patriots. Barmore recorded one tackle for loss and registered one quarterback hit.
Patriots tight end CJ Dippre is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Minkah Fitzpatrick started at safety for the Dolphins. Fitzpatrick made seven tackles on defense and one tackle on special teams.
Patriots linebacker Anfernee Jennings (Dadeville) made two tackles on defense and one tackle on special teams in his debut in his fifth NFL season.
Tua Tagovailoa started at quarterback for the Dolphins. Tagovailoa completed 26-of-32 passes for 315 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. In his 17th 300-yard passing game, Tagovailoa threw an 18-yard TD pass to wide receiver Jaylen Waddle as Miami cut New England’s lead to 12-7 with 11:19 left in the first half and a 29-yard TD pass to running back De’Von Achane as the Dolphins closed the gap to 15-14 with 33 seconds left in the second quarter. The interception came on a fourth-and-9 pass from the Miami 48-yard line with 2:12 left and the Dolphins trailing 30-27.
Jaylen Waddle started at wide receiver for the Dolphins. Waddle had five receptions for 68 yards and one touchdown. Waddle scored on an 18-yard pass from quarterback Tua Tagovailoa as Miami cut New England’s lead to 12-7 with 11:19 left in the first half.
San Francisco 49ers 26, New Orleans Saints 21
Mac Jones started at quarterback for the 49ers. With starter Brock Purdy injured, Jones made his 50th NFL start. Jones completed 26-of-39 passes for 279 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions and ran six times for 6 yards, although he had a scramble for 13 yards. He also lost a fumble. Jones threw touchdown passes of 11 yards to tight end Luke Farrell for the game’s first points with 3:25 left in the first quarter, 7 yards to running back Christian McCaffrey as San Francisco took a 16-7 lead with seven seconds left in the first half and 42 yards to wide receiver Jauan Jennings as the 49ers went up 26-14 with 12:18 to play.
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Ga’Quincy “Kool-Aid” McKinstry (Pinson Valley) started at cornerback for the Saints. McKinstry made one tackle.
Forty-Niners Brian Robinson Jr. (Hillcrest-Tuscaloosa) ran for 20 yards on six carries and caught one pass for a 1-yard loss.
Buffalo Bills 30, New York Jets 10
Bills defensive tackle Phidarian Mathis is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Jets safety Malachi Moore (Hewitt-Trussville) made four tackles on defense and one tackle on special teams.
Jets running back Keilan Robinson is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Bills wide receiver Tyrell Shavers was targeted twice but did not have a reception.
Quinnen Williams (Wenonah) started at defensive tackle for the Jets. Williams made two tackles and recorded one tackle for loss.
Seattle Seahawks 31, Pittsburgh Steelers 17
Josh Jobe started at cornerback for the Seahawks. Jobe made four tackles and broke up one pass.
Seahawks offensive tackle Amari Kight (Thompson) is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Jalen Milroe was designated as the Seahawks’ emergency third quarterback. Milroe could play only if Sam Darnold and Drew Lock could not.
Seahawks fullback Robbie Ouzts made tackles after two turnovers by Seattle.
Seahawks nose tackle Jarran Reed made three tackles and recorded one sack. Reed’s first sack of the 2025 season boosted his career total to 39.5
Los Angeles Rams 33, Tennessee Titans 19
Titans cornerback Jalyn Armour-Davis (St. Paul’s Episcopal) was designated as a game-day inactive.
Titans offensive tackle J.C. Latham was designated as a game-day inactive. A hip injury kept Latham out of the lineup.
Calvin Ridley started at wide receiver for the Titans. Ridley had three receptions for 57 yards.
Indianapolis Colts 29, Denver Broncos 28
Broncos outside linebacker Que Robinson (Jackson-Olin) was designated as a game-day inactive.
Broncos linebacker Drew Sanders is on injured reserve and not eligible to play.
Colts defensive tackle Tim Smith is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Patrick Surtain II started at cornerback for the Broncos. Surtain led Denver with a career-high 11 tackles and broke up one pass. Surtain’s previous career high had been eight tackles.
Philadelphia Eagles 20, Kansas City Chiefs 17
Eagles wide receiver Javon Baker is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Jihaad Campbell started at linebacker for the Eagles. Campbell tied for the team lead with seven tackles and registered one quarterback hit.
Landon Dickerson started at left guard for the Eagles.
Jalen Hurts started at quarterback for the Eagles. Hurts completed 15-of-22 passes for 101 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions and ran nine times for 15 yards and one touchdown. Hurts scored on a 1-yard quarterback sneak as Philadelphia took a 20-10 lead with 7:48 to play.
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Eagles tight end Cameron Latu is on the practice squad and not eligible to play.
Eagles wide receiver John Metchie III returned three kickoffs for 69 yards and had one reception for no gain.
DeVonta Smith started at wide receiver for the Eagles. Smith had four receptions for 53 yards. Smith’s receptions for 13 and 28 yards were the only completions for Philadelphia that gained more than 8 yards.
Tyler Steen started at right guard for the Eagles.
Eagles defensive tackle Byron Young made one tackle.
Atlanta Falcons 22, Minnesota Vikings 6
Jonathan Allen started at defensive tackle for the Vikings. Allen made seven tackles and registered one quarterback hit.
Falcons inside linebacker Ronnie Harrison is on the practice squad and not eligible to play
Falcons safety DeMarcco Hellams made two tackles on special teams in his first game since Dec. 31, 2023. Hellams missed the 2024 season because of an ankle injury, and he did not play in Atlanta’s season-opening game last week.
Ryan Kelly started at center for the Vikings. Kelly left the game to be evaluated for a concussion.
Vikings kicker Will Reichard made both his kicks. He connected for field goals from 33 and 51 yards.
Dallas Turner started at outside linebacker for the Vikings. Turner made five tackles and recorded one sack in his first NFL start. Turner reached a career high for tackles, and the sack was the fourth of his career.
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Week 2 started on Thursday night, when the Green Bay Packers defeated the Washington Commanders 27-18.
Week 2 concludes on Monday, when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Houston Texans square off at 6 p.m. CDT at NRG Stadium in Houston and the Los Angeles Chargers and Las Vegas Raiders meet at 9 p.m. at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. ABC and ESPN will televise the first game, and ESPN will televise the second game.
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