CHARLOTTE—When the Panthers offense watched tape last week, preparing for the Buccaneers, Ikem Ekwonu said they noticed something about Tampa Bay's pressure. Leading up to that point of the season, the game in which the Bucs had pressured and blitzed the quarterback the most was their first matchup against the Panthers.

"They had shown that tendency really when they played us the first time we played them; it was like one of their higher games when it comes to the blitz and pressure percentage," Ekwonu shared Monday. "So, we kind of have that in our heads that we're most likely going to get that same type of pressure again."

Todd Bowles and company doubled down on Sunday. Bryce Young was pressured on 68.6 percent of his drop-backs (24 times), the highest pressure rate faced by any quarterback in a game this season, according to Next Gen Stats. Young was sacked five times.

"I think they did a good job of just putting pressure on us, bringing pressure from different places, and just making us be on top of our game," offensive guard Robert Hunt explained. "I thought everywhere wasn't, it wasn't our best, wasn't really that clean. So, you're going to pay the price with that."

The five sacks were a high number, but they still didn't match his most in a game. He was sacked six times against Dallas. As a rookie, when tying the franchise record for most sacks in a season (62), there were four games where such a mark was met, with two games hitting six sacks and one hitting seven.

The Panthers invested heavily in the offensive line this season, which has paid off more often than not. Additionally, Carolina has seen Young learn to handle the pressure more so that when facing the most pressure he or any passer has all season, there is still a chance for plays to be made.

"He was a stud about it. He just kept battling," Canales said of his quarterback on Monday. "They did a great job whether they were blitzing us or just rushing four with their stunts and some of those things they, I felt like again—kind of the style of the game and the score of it when we give teams more opportunities they will start to game you up different, they will start to attack you in different ways and so you know we kind of brought that on ourselves based on just the mode of the game.

"And Bryce just stood in there, and he kept operating, which is what I was proud of again: to be able to just keep hunting and trying to find opportunities down the field.

Those opportunities down the field did come. According to NGS, Young finished 3-of-6 for 88 yards and two touchdowns on deep pass attempts (20+ air yards), doubling his deep touchdown career total. All four of Young's deep passing touchdowns in his career have come over his last five games.

Some of it was Young's confidence to look downfield, some the flow of the game, playing from behind and having to pass, and some a product of Canales' answer to the Bucs aggressiveness.

"Looking at the course of the game, looking at some of the opportunities that we had, of course, you know, starting off in that first drive, you know, having some success down the field, and then I was calling a little bit more of aggressive style of plays for Bryce," Canales explained. "And I think Bryce could feel that, and so he was looking for those opportunities, and you know, there were a few shots down there, some near misses that I wish we could have back, and we just got to find a way to make those plays.

"But I love the aggressive takes and those shots of it, and then the flip side of it is you're gonna live with some second-and-long, some third downs that get you in in a little bit longer distance when you don't hit those. But I was just looking at those opportunities to try to attack those guys with some of the matchups we had."

Sunday was another day Young proved he could handle the pressure. According to NGS, since returning as a starter in Week 8, Young has thrown five touchdowns and no interceptions when under pressure, tied with Lamar Jackson for the most touchdowns without an interception during that span. In those weeks, Young has also thrown for 8.3 yards per attempt (second-most) and generated a 36.4 percent passing success rate (eighth-highest) against pressure.

He'll be put to the test again this week, though. The Falcons are tied—with the Panthers, Jaguars, and Titans—for the second-fewest sacks in the league at 31 total. However, according to NGS, since their Week 12 bye, the Falcons have generated a 34.3 percent pressure rate, which ranks 12th-highest during that span after recording a 26.3 percent pressure rate (second-lowest) in Weeks 1-12. Since their bye, they have allowed a 30.4 percent success rate when generating pressure, the 10th-lowest in the NFL during that span.

If the past two months are any indication, Young will handle any amount of pressure. And for his teammates, the chance to avenge the blitzkrieg from Tampa Bay and finish on a strong note heading into the offseason makes Sunday worth looking forward to.

"That's the goal, man, to come out and compete and try to win a football game," said Hunt. "I feel like it'll be nice to end the season on a good note."