With the Carolina Panthers trailing 22-16 with under 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter and driving against the No. 1 ranked Philadelphia Eagles defense, defender CJ Gardner-Johnson went down holding his head.

Fox cameras panned to Panthers quarterback Bryce Young taking a moment in prayer. He looked down at his hands while reciting something before the network cut to a commercial.

His 3-10 Carolina side nearly pulled off a miracle upset against an 11-2 Philadelphia outfit tipped by many to reach the Super Bowl. Panthers receiver Xavier Legette struggled to haul in a potential 44-yard bomb from Young with under a minute that would have tied the game.

After a wobbly start to the campaign, Young has done enough in recent weeks since being reinstated as the Panthers start to re-establish himself as the franchise’s quarterback of the future.

Young, the first overall pick in the 2023 draft, was benched for veteran signal-caller Andy Dalton after just two weeks.

“The Red Rifle” immediately turned around a dormant Carolina passing attack and led the team to a dominant road win over the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 3.

Young expressed his reliance on his faith to guide him through the toughest stretch of his professional career. “I draw my confidence from the Lord and He’s never forsaken me, never will,” he told reporters in September.

“At the end of the day, I take accountability for, for myself and my actions for how things have gone. At the end of the day, as the quarterback and as a leader, it all falls on my shoulders…And I have to take that in stride and do what I can now to try to grow and improve.”

Young by no means had his strongest statistical outing against the Eagles on Sunday. The 23-year-old completed 19 of his 24 passes for 191 yards with one touchdown and one interception.

With his team down six and facing a third-and-eleven from their own two-line with under four minutes to play, Young shrugged off a barrage of Philadelphia pressure and connected with Legette 33 yards down the field.

Legette would ultimately let down Young later in the drive, but the formerly maligned quarterback still received a heaping of praise from every corner of X.

“For all intents and purposes… Bryce Young led a 98-yard game-winning touchdown drive with 3:00 left and no timeouts on the road against the #1 ranked defense in the league. Xavier Legette had other ideas,” tweeted YouTuber Marcus Wittman.