Bryce Young will be back under center for the Carolina Panthers on Sunday, as Andy Dalton is still dealing with a sprained thumb he suffered in a car accident.
It will be Young’s first start after he was benched following Week 2’s embarrassing 26-3 loss against the Los Angeles Chargers. In that game, the former No. 1 overall pick threw for a paltry 84 yards and an interception.
The Panthers gave up a ton of assets to the Chicago Bears to move up to draft Young in 2023, including what turned out to be the 2024 No. 1 overall pick, which the Bears used to draft quarterback Caleb Williams. To put it bluntly, the trade has been an abject failure — so far — for Carolina.
In 18 career starts, Young is 2-16, including 0-2 this year. He was sacked a whopping 62 times his rookie season. His career numbers look like this:
- 59.5% completion percentage
- 11 passing touchdowns
- 13 interceptions
- 158.8 passing yards per game
- 5.4 yards per passing attempt
- 71.0 passer rating
Those numbers don’t scream franchise quarterback. They don’t even pass for a playable backup. But, with the Panthers in a jam, Young will start once again.
The Panthers are hoping this could up his trade value and Young is hoping this could prompt a much less dysfunctional team to take a chance on him.
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On The Athletic’s “Scoop City” podcast with NFL insider Dianna Russini and former NFL quarterback Chase Daniel, the two discussed Young’s upcoming start and whether if it’s a good thing.
Daniel believes Young is only going to hurt his trade value because the young QB will be facing the No. 3 defense in the league in the Denver Broncos.
“They’re No. 1 in pressure rate,” Daniel said of the Broncos. “Carolina has the second-worst offensive line behind New England. It’s going to get worse. You have a chance for him to get hurt. I would stash him and trade him in the offseason.”
Daniel believes head coaches like Sean McVay of the Los Angeles Rams and Kevin McConnell of the Minnesota Vikings could turn Young’s career around. But, Daniel even mentioned a four-time Super Bowl-winning coach that could get Young back on track.
“Here’s one that might sound crazy: Go to freaking Andy Reid. Go be a backup. You don’t have to play if you’re not ready. There’s guys out there that will fix him for sure,” Daniel noted.
The Kansas City Chiefs taking a flyer on Young does make sense. He could sit and learn behind Patrick Mahomes, not be thrown to the wolves, and grow at his own pace.
Russini revealed that she talked to one of Young’s former college coaches at Alabama who still believes in him.
“I had a long talk with one of Bryce’s coaches from Alabama recently. Did we miss something? And he said: He has it. He just needs the right people around him. He’s not getting the right coaching,” Russini said.