The Carolina Panthers benched quarterback Bryce Young after two games this season, turning the offense over to Andy Dalton.
After Dalton injured his thumb in a car accident last week, the Panthers went back to Young for their game against the Denver Broncos in Week 8. It was a tough matchup for Young to return to the lineup as Denver’s defense ranks near the top of the NFL in most major categories.
Considering the circumstances, Young had a decent performance. The second-year QB completed 64.9% of his passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns. He was also sacked twice and threw two interceptions.
Young led a 10-play, 49-yard scoring drive to begin the game. After that, Carolina’s offense struggled to get things going until late in the fourth. Young was asked after the game what happened after the opening drive.
“Just execution,” the QB said. “Credit to the Broncos and their defense, they did a really good job. Especially at the beginning, we felt like we were just one play away. Whether it was self-inflicted or just execution stuff.
“In the second half, we just got to do a better job of stringing along drives and executing. Credit to them they did a good job. For us, we have to watch the film and then see what we have to do to get better.”
Young was later asked what Denver’s defense did to take away the Panthers’ deep passing game on Sunday.
“They did a good job of mixing things up,” Young explained. “Giving a lot of different presentations, especially third down, doing different things. Same on base down, too. Again, credit to them.
“For us, we don’t want to let the defense dictate what we’re able to do or not able to do. We have to do a better job of executing. There was one that I missed. There was stuff left out there that I have to wear. We just got to watch the film and then see how we can be better.”
Carolina dropped to 1-7 following a 28-14 loss to the Broncos, who improved to 5-3. Up next for the Panthers is a home game against the New Orleans Saints (2-6). Denver will go on the road to take on the Baltimore Ravens (5-3) in Week 9.
