Panthers quarterback Bryce Young followed up one of the best games of his career with a dud against the 49ers on Monday night.
Young threw for 448 yards and three touchdowns in a Week 11 overtime win against the Falcons, but he was 18-of-29 for 169 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions in Carolina’s 20-9 loss in Santa Clara.
Young’s first interception came four plays after Jaycee Horn picked off Brock Purdy to set the Panthers up in the red zone. They had a first down on the 1-yard line, but Young tried to force a pass to tight end Mitchell Evans instead of throwing it away. Safety Ji’Ayir Brown picked the ball off and Brown intercepted Young again with less than five minutes left in the game.
“I’ve got to do [a better job executing](https://www.panthers.com/news/dave-canales-missed-opportunities-on-offense-in-loss-at-san-francisco),” Young said after the game, via the team’s website. “Obviously, I’ve got to take care of the ball. I’ve got to do a better job of making plays go today. I take all ownership in that, and we have a locker room of guys that do that. So, you know, we’ve just got to be better. Again, there’s not some magical fix. It’s us buckling down and playing good football. Didn’t get that done on offense today. Again it sucks, but it’s a quick week. We’ve got to be able to flush it quick, and on to the next one.”
Purdy threw three interceptions in the first half on Monday, which provided Young and the Panthers with a golden opportunity to steal a road win that would have sent them into Thanksgiving in first place in the NFC South. Young’s underwhelming effort helped them miss that opportunity and they’ll have a tough task against the Rams in Week 13.