The Carolina Panthers defeated the Detroit Lions 32-26 on Sunday during Week 4 of the NFL regular season, led by Bryce Young’s 329 passing yards and two touchdowns.
Young guided a Carolina offense that capitalized on red-zone opportunities, while Chuba Hubbard added 122 rushing yards and two scores on the ground. Tetairoa McMillan contributed 192 receiving yards and caught both of Young’s touchdown passes to help level the Panthers’ record at 2-2 on the season.
Panthers Establish Early Advantage Through Hubbard and Young
Detroit opened the scoring in the first quarter when kicker Jake Bates converted a 54-yard field goal. Carolina responded immediately when Hubbard broke free for a rushing touchdown, pushing the visitors ahead 7-3. The Panthers extended their lead in the second quarter as Young found McMillan for their first scoring connection of the afternoon, followed by a 47-yard field goal from kicker Ryan Fitzgerald to make it 16-13.
The Lions answered before halftime behind a pair of field goals from Bates and a rushing touchdown by Jahmyr Gibbs, sending both teams to the locker rooms tied at 16-16.
Carolina Extends Lead with Third and Fourth Quarter Scores
Carolina regained momentum in the third quarter when Young and McMillan connected for their second touchdown of the game, stretching the lead to 22-16 despite Fitzgerald missing his second extra point of the contest. Bates narrowed the gap to 22-19 with another field goal for Detroit, but Hubbard answered swiftly with his second rushing touchdown of the afternoon to push the score to 29-19.
Coach Dan Campbell’s Lions struggled with execution and offensive rhythm early in the fourth quarter. Fitzgerald added a field goal to extend Carolina’s advantage to 32-19 with minutes remaining.
Late Lions Surge Falls Short
Jared Goff engineered a 10-play, 67-yard drive with just over three minutes left on the game clock, connecting with Sam LaPorta for a late passing touchdown that brought Detroit within six points at 32-26. However, the ensuing comeback attempt ran out of time, leaving both the Panthers and Lions with identical 2-2 records after four weeks of play.
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