What Baker Mayfield said about Bryce Young’s potential after overtime thriller

Mayfield had nothing but praise to lavish on Carolina's QB1.

Matt Alquiza | 2 Hours Ago

Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

In this story:

Carolina Panthers

Baker Mayfield and Bryce Young went toe-to-toe in one of week 13's most breathtaking contests.

Both former Heisman Trophy winning, number one overall NFL Draft selections duked it out in a 68 minute slugfest that was ultimately decided not by their right arms, but by the running backs that line up beside them. Tampa Bay's Rachaad White and Bucky Irving diced up the Carolina Panthers defense on their way to victory, while Chuba Hubbard fumbled the ball away on a potential game-winning drive in overtime.

While Young's squad took the L, Sunday's game was another encouraging outing for the once left for dead signal-caller. His week 13 opposition, Mayfield, knows a thing or two about rising from the dead under the tutelage of Dave Canales. Baker spoke postgame about the potential that Bryce Young possesses, while also speaking about Young's performance under the lights on Sunday evening.

"I wouldn't say (I was) impressed. I'm just proud of him. The ups and downs of the league and the things that you go through, speaking from my own personal experience, I'm proud of him. This guy has the potential to do anything he wants to do and he's just gotta gain his confidence back, and I think you can see it growing each and every day. And obviously knowing the staff that he's with, I know that's a big part of what they do in that building."

If their respective trajectories continue, it's easy to project a future in which Mayfield and Young continue to duke it out year in and year out for the NFC South crown. The two quarterbacks continue to impress onlookers weekly with their progressions, and as the Saints and Falcons flounder at the quarterback position, the division is there for the taking.

Sign me up for more duels like the one we saw last night.