Coach Dave Canales on Bryce Young after another terrible performance by the Panthers: He is “our quarterback”
Two games into his second NFL season, Bryce Young is showing no signs of improvement after his disappointing rookie season. It’s fair to say he’s taken a step back after two poor performances in the Carolina Panthers’ 0-2 start.
Young completed 13 of 30 passes for 161 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions in Carolina’s 47-10 loss to the New Orleans Saints in Week 1. On Sunday, he completed 8 of 14 passes for 84 yards (3.2 yards per attempt) with an interception in a 26-3 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
These numbers do not correspond to those of an NFL starting quarterback.
After the game, head coach Dave Canales was asked if Young or veteran backup Andy Dalton would be Carolina’s starting quarterback in Week 3 against the Las Vegas Raiders. Here is his response:
“Bryce is our quarterback,” Canales said. “We’re just going to continue to work on reinforcements and fix the things that we need to fundamentally change from a system standpoint.”
“All of those things – those are all valuable reps. Those are all valuable games. We’re going to learn a lot from this game and hopefully we’ll take another step this week.”
What else can he say? The Panthers used the first overall draft pick to select Young in 2023. They spent a ton of money to get that pick from the Chicago Bears, including a pick that became the Chicago Bears’ first overall pick, which they used to draft Caleb Williams in April.
They’re all fixated on Young. He was a loser at this point in his career. But the Panthers have invested their football future in their young quarterback. Benching him 18 games into his career isn’t really an option, is it?
At the same time, the question is how much the loss and the poor play have damaged Young’s confidence. Would it be good for him to take a break from live action to reorient himself? There is no easy answer to that. But that is something Canales will have to find out.
The Panthers brought in Canales to help develop Young. He was quarterbacks coach with the Seattle Seahawks and offensive coordinator with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where he helped revive the careers of Geno Smith and Baker Mayfield, respectively. The Panthers are counting on him to repeat his performance as Young’s head coach.
So what’s the right answer? Canales says right now it’s to keep Young playing. But if the terrible offense and losses continue to mount, that answer will become harder and harder to justify. Whatever the answer — if there is one — Canales’ future as Carolina’s head coach depends on it.
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