Atlanta Falcons Coach Has Surprising Evaluation of Carolina Panthers' Bryce Young

Atlanta Falcons defensive coordinator Jerry Gray has been impressed by the development of Bryce Young since playing the Carolina Panthers in Week 1.

The Atlanta Falcons will play the Carolina Panthers this Sunday in a rematch of the two team’s Week 1 matchup that ended 24-10 in favor of the Falcons.

However, despite these two teams having already played one another this season, things are drastically different 15 weeks into the season, especially with rookie quarterback Bryce Young.

To truly know how good a football player is, you should listen to how much their opponents respect them as a competitor, not the media’s opinion or their own organization’s bias trying to protect egos.

Ahead of the game in Carolina on Sunday, Falcons defensive coordinator/assistant head coach Jerry Gray was complimentary of the Panthers rookie quarterback.

Calais Campbell & Bryce Young / USA Today Sports

“Well, when you watch the last couple of games, he’s taking off running a lot more, Gray said. “He’s not trying to sit in the pocket and take those hits. I know last week, he made like 40 yards scrambling, which you would’ve never said game one because he sat in there and waited on throws. So now, he’s actually taking off.”

To hear Gray talk so positively about the No. 1 pick’s progress this season is a bit of a reality check, considering that Young has taken scrutiny all season for not being as good as C.J. Stroud, the second quarterback drafted in this class.

Falcons Preparing For ‘Most Important Game of The Season’

Stroud has made the Houston Texans a playoff threat in his first season, while Young’s team has the worst record in the NFL at 1-12, but based on Gray’s analysis of Carolina, it doesn’t sound like Atlanta is taking its opponent lightly.

Currently sitting in third place in the NFC South following the Falcons’ loss to the Bucs, Atlanta must continue to win in order to keep pace with the division leaders and remain in playoff contention. With the NFC South currently featuring three teams tied at 6-7, any week, one of the teams could suddenly slide back into the No. 1 seed.