ATLANTA — Tommy Tremble, aglow under the multiple camera lights that identify a star in the locker room after a game-changing play, turned to his rookie counterpart from the tight end room.

"Yes, Mitchell, you had a question?" Tremble asked Mitchell Evans.

"Ah, yes," began Evans, affecting the voice of a very serious newscaster. "What was going through your head as you were running down the sideline?"

In the same manner, Tremble responded, "Just don't fumble and win the game."

Easier said than done, when a linebacker is on your back for over 10 yards, but Tremble delivered in the clutch, yet again, for the Panthers with a 54-yard catch and run that set up a game-winning field goal, as they notched an overtime win against the Falcons in Atlanta.

Tremble loves playing in Atlanta.

He's a hometown boy with a chance to play in front of his entire family when the Panthers make their annual pilgrimage south. He had around 15 family members in attendance on Sunday.

Last season, during the 2024 finale, the tight end had the famous no-look touchdown from Bryce Young in that overtime win.

And on Sunday, it was Tremble, again, who had the defining play of another overtime win in Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

It was the Panthers' first possession of overtime. Given the new rules this season, and with both teams having possession, Carolina deferred after winning the overtime coin toss. The defense rewarded the decision and forced the Falcons to punt. A field goal would win the game; the Panthers just had to get in Ryan Fitzgeralds range.

On second-and-9 from their own 31-yard line, Young surveyed the defense from an empty backfield. He had five pass-catchers wide, and the Panthers' offense had been tearing apart the league's No. 1 passing defense all day.

Young took the snap, went through his progressions, saw little there, and finally landed on his last progression in the play: Tommy Tremble.

"(Bryce) evaluated it and he got through his progressions," explained coach Dave Canales after the win. "We got to give the offensive line credit for allowing him to take that second hitch and find Tommy late, and then Tommy just secured the ball and took off."

Tremble was waiting patiently for the ball. As soon as he came off the line of scrimmage and saw the leverage the Falcons' defensive backs had taken, he knew he had a chance to make a play should Young get to him.

"I knew that it was going to be open once we snapped the ball, the DB's leverage, all that stuff, and so I was just patient, waiting for it," explained Tremble. And then when he did it, the receivers ended up getting some good blocks and we were able to take it down."

He got a block from Brycen Tremayne that, in hindsight, was where the play was likely designed to go. Tremayne laid his block perfectly to get Tremble past the sticks. But then Tremble kept going. All of his teammates swiveled their heads quickly after realizing he was downfield.

"I saw him catch it and then—and I'm kind of watching him, making sure like I'm like, all right, I'm about to go try to see if I can get in front of him to block," shared receiver Jalen Coker.

Rico Dowdle bragged of Tremble after the game that the veteran tight end is "one of the best blocking tight ends I ever played with." It would make sense that his teammates want to return the favor. But the speedy Coker wasn't able to catch Tremble, as he turned on the burners.

"Hey man, people forget, man, I run like a 4.5 (40-yard dash)," pleaded Tremble. "I block good, but hey, I run a 4.5 too."

After watching him streak down the field, Coker couldn't help but agree, his tight end has wheels.

"Yeah, he absolutely does," smiled Coker, before admitting he must have been one of the guys who forgot Tremble could move. "I must have not been hip either because he got out of there.

"He makes one guy miss, throws a stiff arm, and then he's out the gate, and I was like, go score, you know, let's just walk out of here on that."

From the sideline, Canales was thinking the same thing.

"I'd love for him to just score on that one to get all the antics out of the way," joked the coach.

Kaden Ellis did catch up to Tremble about halfway through his run down the right sideline, draping over his back and staying on the tight end for around 12 yards. Tremble drug him for as long as he could, getting into the red zone.

"I know there's always a ghost guy you don't see, so I was just protecting the ball, making sure we get down there and score," Tremble explained, before joking he really went down to be a good teammate.

"I knew we were—a field goal won it, so I was just trying to be do the safe thing, do the smart thing, and make sure that we won the game, wanting (Fitzgerald) to get a little glory for it."

It was Tremble's one catch on the day, but it was the one that mattered most. With the chip-shot field goal set-up, Fitzgerald was able to walk it off for the Panthers' sixth win of the season.

"It was just guys being where they're supposed to be when they're supposed to be there," said Canales. "And one of our basic, most core concepts that we've run a million times, the guys execute it well in a critical time, and that's what good football is about."

And for Tommy Tremble, back in his hometown with the team that has become his second home, it was simply about making the play that needed to be made.

"Everyone on our team is ready to make a play," said Tremble. "And so when Bryce gave me the chance, I decided to try to make a play."