The Carolina Panthers gave up an arm and a leg, or maybe a few of both, to finally find the solution to their longstanding quarterback woes. But according to one NFL analyst, their situation under center isn’t entirely solved.
Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport recently ranked the 10 worst quarterback situations heading into this year’s training camp. All the way down at No. 4 sits the Panthers, who Davenport believes haven’t equipped their rookie with the greatest of supporting casts:
Reports have been mostly glowing about Young since he joined the Panthers, and while he still technically has to beat out Andy Dalton to start, that’s going to happen. Nothing that Young showed at Alabama indicated that his height will prevent him from succeeding. New Panthers head coach Frank Reich is a keen offensive mind. And the Panthers offensive line ranks in the top half of the league.
But Young’s offensive weapons are—not great.
The Panthers No. 1 wide receiver (Adam Thielen) is past his prime and hasn’t posted a 1,000-yard season since 2018. The team’s No. 2 receiver (D.J. Chark) has just one 1,000-yard season on his resume (in 2019).
Of this year’s incoming rookies. Young is the most NFL-ready.
But without better weapons, it’s not going to be easy making the jump to the pros.
Carolina’s ranking seemingly has more to do with what’s around the quarterback position, not the quarterbacks themselves. And that’s a relief considering all that they’ve invested into securing Young this offseason.
But if their skill players don’t step up, the Panthers may have to invest even more into helping their franchise passer beyond 2023.
