No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young lost his first NFL head coach just 11 games into his pro career. The Carolina Panthers quarterback spoke about the departure on Wednesday.
Following this afternoon’s practice, Young was asked about the firing of Frank Reich—who now parts ways with the franchise after a rough 1-10 record. The rookie, like a seasoned veteran, said Reich wasn’t the sole reason for the team’s struggles, particularly on offense.
“We all take ownership,” he stated. “Especially offensively, it’s all of us. I think we all look in the mirror. There’s all things we could’ve done better. We all wanted to do better. It’s a collective unit. There’s no finger-pointing from players, coaches, nothing. We all could’ve been better, and we have to improve.”
Through Reich’s 11-game reign, the Panthers averaged the third-fewest yards per game and the fourth-fewest points per game. Young obviously hasn’t put up the hottest numbers either, as he’s averaged just 187.7 passing yards a contest with nine touchdowns and eight interceptions.
Nonetheless, Young said everyone in the group is accountable for those results.
“We all share in that,” he later added. “We all talk, we all feel like . . . again, you never wanna see people lose their job. We wanted to, of course, come in—especially this being a new team—wanted to come in and conquer things together and accomplish our goals together. We all take responsibility in that not being the case.”