Panthers PFF grades for Week 3 show what Dave Canales' offense can do in the right hands

Carolina's new backfield combo of Andy Dalton and Chuba Hubbard had the best PFF grades on offense in Sunday's win over Las Vegas.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - SEPTEMBER 22: Quarterback Andy Dalton #14 hands the ball off to Chuba Hubbard #30 of the Carolina Panthers during the first quarter against the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium on September 22, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. / (Photo by Louis Grasse/Getty Images)

The Carolina Panthers are not going winless. Not this year, anyway. On Sunday the team came roaring out of the gates in a road game against the Las Vegas Raiders, responding to a emotionally fraught week with a superb all-around performance in a 36-22 win. The box score numbers are pretty all around, as the Panthers ran the ball just as welll as they threw it, posting 437 total yards of offense. That's an almost unimaginable offensive explosion given how bad this unit looked the previous two weeks with a different quarterback running the show.

If the final score wasn't enough to convince you, perhaps Pro Football Focus' grades for Carolina will show that the decision to bench Bryce Young and start Andy Dalton was a bold gamble that paid off in the best-possible way. Granted, this is against a Raiders defense that Dalton has somehow managed to own throughout his now 14-year career. Still, what the Panthers put on film was some very sharp stuff against any modern NFL defense. Here's what we learned from PFF's grades.

Andy Dalton shows what's possible without Bryce Young

Comparing Dalton's blazing 2024 debut to Young's production in Weeks 1-2 is a real yikes! moment, and might represent a turning point for the franchise. The PFF grades reflect that as well, as Dalton earned the second-highest grade of the week on offense at 78.8 overall, 75.3 passing. Only running back Chuba Hubbard earned a better mark, coming in at 90.6 overall, with superb grades in passing (90.5), pass blocking (81.5) and running (82.7). Wide receiver Diontae Johnson came in third (77.1 overall), followed by left tackle Ickey Ekwonu (76.2 overall). Right guard Robert Hunt (69.9) and left guard Damien Lewis (67.1) had another strong outing, as well.

Overall, the big break-through offensively is a pretty stinging indictment of Bryce Young and his game. To see the entire offense respond like this in such a dramatic way after only one week is pretty telling. Clearly this unit needed a new leader, and Dalton answered the call and then some. Head coach Dave Canales has only one obvious path for now: let Dalton lead this group as far as he can.

Shorthanded iDL rotation comes through

On the other side of the ball the Panthers were really shorthanded in their interior defensive line rotation. With Derrick Brown on IR and Shy Tuttle being ruled out this week, A'Shawn Robinson stepped up and took advantage of the opportunity, earning the highest grade on defense (82.5 overall, 79.6 pass rush) this week. Nickel corner Troy Hill (78.4 overall, 80.4 coverage) finished second, followed by another interior defensive lineman: Jayden Peevy (74.1 overall, 75.5 pass rush).

Feleipe Franks tops special teams

Carolina's on-again, off-again, on-again tight end Feleip Franks is putting in good work on special teams this year, at least when he's on the roster. Franks earned the team's highest grade (83.7 overall) in this phase in Week 3. Former Texas tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders didn't fare so well though, posting the lowest grade both on special teams (57.4) and on offense (42.0 overall). It's best to have patience with Sanders, though. After all, he's only a rookie.

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