With 2:39 left in the Panthers’ playoff matchup against the Rams in January, Bryce Young was seated on the field with a big smile spread across his face and both arms raised in the air.

The 2023 No. 1 overall draft pick had just delivered one of the early defining plays of his career, a perfectly placed go-ahead touchdown pass to Jalen Coker in the corner of the end zone that Young — watching from his back after a hit from a Rams defender — saw the finality of on the stadium video board.

It was part of a back-and-forth duel between not only the Panthers and Rams but also between Young, NFL MVP Matthew Stafford and a defense that ranked fourth-best in the NFC in scoring defense last season. While late heroics from Stafford led to a Carolina loss, Young’s performance in that game — the touchdown pass to Coker, the 288 total yards and the way he guided the Panthers to 31 points during the final three quarters — left the Carolina staff bullish about the future of its then-24-year-old quarterback and that he could be poised for an even bigger breakthrough in 2026.

It’s something that, nine months later, is now coming to fruition. Though the Panthers are just 2-2, Carolina ranks fourth in the NFL in scoring and the former Alabama Heisman Trophy winner is leading the league with 1,268 passing yards.

“He’s out there looking like Alabama Bryce,” a Carolina source told CBS Sports.

It’s the next phase of what’s been a gradual four-year process for Young, the Panthers and third-year coach Dave Canales. 

After initially joining a team that finished just 2-15 during his rookie season in 2023, Carolina improved to 5-12 in 2024 and then, aided by Young, made the playoffs last year for the first time since 2017. Young has thrown for at least 287 yards in each of the first four games of this year with 10 total touchdowns and only two interceptions.

Only Lamar Jackson has a higher Pro Football Focus grade among quarterbacks who’ve made more than two starts. That’s despite Young playing without several key offensive teammates who have missed time this season due to injuries, including Coker, fellow wide receiver Xavier Legette and multiple offensive linemen.

“Let’s call a spade a spade: His first year in the league, he got handed a really shitty deck of cards, had an offensive line that couldn’t block a soul and they didn’t have any (high-caliber) wideouts,” a Carolina source said. “And just overall, his first couple years, you didn’t really see a supporting cast. 

“But then last year and this year, he’s been getting used to the offense, actually has some weapons around him and has a line that can protect him. And credit to Bryce, too. The dude works his ass off. Great leader. Really smart. Elite processor. As good (pre-snap) and with protection as there is and understanding where he has to get to, how to move it and knowing: OK, I just made a big bet in protection, I could be hot here and this is where I’m going to go with the ball.

“And then also, I think the staff has found what he does well and is putting him in position to be as successful as possible and highlight what his strengths are.”

For example, the Panthers view Young as excelling with RPOs (run-pass options) and essentially being similar to a shortstop in terms of being decisive and able to get the ball out of his hands in a speedy manner. After having some success with RPOs last year, Carolina has continued to incorporate those into the offense this season, including most recently during its 32-26 win over the Lions last week when the Panthers used RPOs even more based on Detroit’s style of defense.

Young finished the game 29 of 41 with 329 passing yards, two passing touchdowns and no interceptions.

“He’s playing more in rhythm,” an opposing coach who’s faced the Panthers this season told CBS Sports. “He’s working through progressions. He’s getting the ball out on time. The other thing I think he does extremely well compared to other shorter quarterbacks around the league is that he throws big in-breaks like daggers and digs extremely well and makes people pay with that. And I think the organization has done a good job shoring up the interior of the pocket for him. They’ve got massive (interior offensive linemen). And I feel like that’s critical for shorter quarterbacks. You can’t give up push up the middle because they can’t see if you do, like I always felt that was a problem with Kyler (Murray) in Arizona. But with Bryce, you started to see him take a step last year and I just feel like he’s now playing so efficiently, being more consistent and I’ve definitely seen growth from last year to this year.”

It’s all contributed to these results — the passing yardage numbers, the Panthers scoring 32 points in three of the first four games and that assessment from the aforementioned Carolina source of Young being back to looking “like Alabama Bryce.”

“You can definitely see him coming into his own,” an opposing team staffer said.