Young Throws for 329, McMillan Catches 14 as Panthers Beat Lions in Week 4
The short version
- Bryce Young went 29-of-41 for 329 yards and two touchdowns, opening the game with 11 straight completions.
- Tetairoa McMillan caught 14 of 15 targets for 192 yards and both TDs, tying Muhsin Muhammad for the second-most single-game receiving yards in Panthers history.
- The Panthers beat the Lions on Sunday night in Week 4 in a nationally televised game.
- Young's prior benchmarks include 361 yards and four total TDs vs. Chicago in Week 1, a franchise-record 448 passing yards vs. Atlanta in 2025 and five total TDs vs. Atlanta in 2024.
- MVP chants greeted Young, and teammate Nick Scott said 'I love him' when asked about his quarterback.
Bryce Young passed for 329 yards and two touchdowns and Tetairoa McMillan caught 14 passes for 192 yards as the Panthers beat the Lions on Sunday night in Week 4.
The Carolina Panthers beat the Detroit Lions on Sunday night in Week 4, and the nationally televised game turned into a showcase for quarterback Bryce Young and wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan. Carolina's passing attack ran heavily through the pairing, and the performance drew reaction from fans and observers across the NFL once the final whistle sounded.
Young completed 29 of 41 passes for 329 yards and two touchdowns, opening the game with 11 consecutive completions. He kept attacking Detroit's pass defense from there through the fourth quarter. The game account described those numbers as not fully capturing how well the quarterback played, noting he appeared in command from his first attempt to his last.
McMillan was on the other end of most of that production. He caught 14 of his 15 targets for 192 yards and both of Young's touchdown passes, including a 32-yard score and a difficult toe-tap reception late in the fourth quarter. The yardage total tied Muhsin Muhammad for the second-most receiving yards in a single game in franchise history.
McMillan, listed at 6-foot-5 and 212 pounds, drew widespread notice for his route running on a night many viewers called the best of his career. Fans marveled that movement of that quality is unusual for a receiver of his size, and memes circulated about Detroit's unsuccessful attempts to cover him.
Young's Week 4 numbers were not the largest of his career, which added context to the performance. In Week 1 this season, he produced 361 yards and four total touchdowns against the Chicago Bears. He set a Panthers franchise record with 448 passing yards against the Atlanta Falcons in 2025 and accounted for five total touchdowns in a 2024 meeting with the Falcons.
Reaction extended well beyond Carolina's fan base once the game ended. Several posts singled out the touchdown throw from Young to McMillan as one of the best completions of the season, and clips of the connection spread quickly across social media throughout the night. Panthers fans also shared emotional reactions to the win.
MVP chants for Young were heard during the game, and teammate Nick Scott was captured saying 'I love him' when discussing his quarterback and the chants. The outpouring reflected a night in which both Young, No. 9, and McMillan, No. 4, delivered what the game coverage called perhaps the finest performances of their NFL careers.
The win arrived in the Sunday night window on the Week 4 schedule, one of the most visible broadcasts of the week. For a national audience, the story of the game was the Young-to-McMillan connection, which produced both of Carolina's touchdowns through the air and the bulk of its passing yardage.
Games to watch
