There’s still hope out there for Bryce Young, even from the very guy who benched him.
Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales spoke with reporters following Wednesday’s practice, the first since announcing his decision to demote the struggling second-year quarterback. He was asked if he believes last year’s No. 1 overall pick can still grow into a franchise player.
“Absolutely,” Canales replied. “This is a developmentally-minded program. So the development didn’t stop. Every rep he’s out there—we’re evaluating the whole thing, having conversations and just continuing to push all of our guys, including Bryce, to take that next step. Every day is a growth possibility and opportunity. So we’re fully committed to that.”
Young, after a disappointing rookie campaign in 2023, was slow to get out of the gate here in 2024. Over the team’s pair of lackluster losses, the 23-year-old passed for just 245 yards and three interceptions.
Now that he’s the backup to veteran Andy Dalton, Young has a much different job at practice for the time being. Canales was asked about that as well.
“He took a lot of the scout reps today,” Canales responded. “He was in the competition periods with the mixed group. And so, those are some of the things that he’s taken on as the 2 quarterback. He did a fabulous job today. And he played fast, he found some nice completions all over the field. Whatever we ask everyone to do—take your job seriously and attack it. And that’s the expectation.”
