Bryce Young never been to Europe.

The 23-year-old quarterback will open an intact passport and make his first trip abroad as Carolina Panthers face the New York Giants Sunday in a battle of 2 to 7 teams.

Young retained his starting job after leading the Panthers on a fourth-quarter touchdown drive in a 23-22 win over the New Orleans Saints last Sunday. Now, last year’s No. 1 overall draft pick hopes to lead the Panthers to their first back-to-back wins since December 2022.

Young got the green light for healthy man Andy Dalton.

Dalton had taken over as Carolina’s starter in Week 3 after head coach Dave Canales benched Young following a slow start to the season. But Dalton sprained his right thumb in a car accident and hasn’t played since. He will be the No. 2 quarterback for the second week in a row.

“He did a fantastic job of finishing that match the right way, finding a way to win and really fighting that way, so I was really proud of Bryce for that,” Canales said. “I just took all the information and wanted to give him another opportunity to go out and face the Giants this week in Germany.

Young, who is 3-17 as a starter in the NFL, said he feels grateful for the opportunity — even if his long-term future with the team remains uncertain.

“The more things I can experiment with, I feel more and more comfortable,” Young said. “It’s something we continue to grow and build on.”

Carolina’s defense, which has given up more points than any team in the league, will face the Giants’ quarterback. Daniel Joneswho grew up in Charlotte and supported the Panthers while playing at Charlotte Latin High School. Jones will face his hometown team thousands of miles from home.

“It gives you some perspective on how far you’ve come and the opportunity you have to play in the NFL,” Jones said. “And certainly, I really appreciate that.” Once the ball is picked up and thrown, it’s just another game.”

The Giants have lost four straight, but Jones has a chance to turn things around against a porous Carolina defense.

Former teammates

Will this be the Brian Brule revenge game?

The Giants outside linebacker was drafted by Carolina with the 16th overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. He had 59 tackles for loss and 46 sacks in 80 games with Carolina, including at least 7 1/2 sacks each season. However, the Panthers refused to give Burns – considered one of the league’s best edge rushers – a contract extension and traded him in the offseason to New York.

Burns has five sacks and 36 tackles in nine games.

“It’s just another game for me,” Burns said. “I will prepare the same way and plan to achieve a victory in Germany.”

Coming home

No one is more excited about going to Germany than Giants guard Jacob Johnsonoriginally from Stuttgart.

The 29-year-old has been on the trade thread about a dozen times this season, being signed, waived and elevated to the active roster and waived again. He’s on the practice squad this week and traveling.

Johnson purchased 52 tickets for friends and family. When he started playing in 2007, he said Germans considered soccer an extreme sport, like skateboarding. He says it’s become much more popular.

“People might be surprised at how many people show up. They may not wear all the Giants and Panthers jerseys, but they will come with the jerseys they have and they will make some noise,” Johnson said.

Brooks’ debut?

The Panthers are hoping rookie running back Jonathon Brooks can make his debut, which would bolster the team’s depth in the backfield and pose a scoring threat because of his breakaway speed.

Brooks, who tore his ACL during his final season at Texas, was activated to the 53-man roster earlier this week.

Chuba Hubbardwho was rewarded Thursday with a four-year contract extension, remains the starting running back and is expected to get the bulk of the carries. The 2021 fourth-round pick totaled 665 yards and five touchdowns while averaging 5 yards per carry.

Panthers general manager Dan Morgan said Hubbard “exemplifies everything we want on and off the field. Chuba is passionate about football, is productive and committed to his teammates and winning.

Constantly evolving WR room

The Panthers traded wide receivers Diontae Johnson And Jonathan Mingoleaving them a little thin at this position. With Adam ThielenWhile Michael Jackson’s status is still unclear — he missed the last six weeks with a hamstring injury — the Panthers will ask tight end Jordan Matthews to line up on the sideline at times. Deven Thompkins could also see some action.

“I have a lot of confidence in Jordan and we will count on him to help us in that sense as well,” Canales said. “That’s the hope, he’ll be able to do a little bit of both.”

Rookies Xavier Legette and Jalen Coker and veteran David Moore should see the bulk of the work at wide receiver.

Perfection at stake in Europe

THE New York Giants are 3-0 in regular season games played in Europe, while the Panthers are 1-0.

The Giants won in London in 2007, 2016 and 2022 and made the playoffs in each of those three seasons, including a Super Bowl title. They are one of six teams undefeated in international play, joining Minnesota (4-0), Kansas City (3-0), Philadelphia (3-0), Dallas (1-0) and Carolina.

The Panthers beat Tampa Bay in 2019 in London.

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AP Sports Writer Tom Canavan contributed to this report.

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