24 Questions for ‘24: Is there hope for Bryce Young?

Let’s explore four questions about the past, present, and future of the Panthers young quarterback.

As we look forward to the 2024 season, in the coming weeks we’ll ask 24 important questions that will shape the Panthers future.

Is there hope for Bryce Young?

Short answer: Yes, there is still hope!

First, I’m not a Bryce Young apologist. I have no agenda or ulterior motives in what I’m about to write in this column. I don’t get paid for clicks and I despise “embrace the debate” sports journalism. I’m just giving my opinion here and it’s okay if your view of Bryce Young differs from mine. Rational people can disagree.

When projecting Bryce Young’s future we need to first highlight three fundamental truths about his rookie season:

Truth No. 1 – Bryce Young stepped into a terrible situation in Carolina. The coaching turnover, dearth of capable receiving targets, poor run support, and bottom-tier blocking was a recipe for disaster for just about any rookie quarterback. There was complete organizational failure around Bryce Young in 2023. He was set up to fail. A hypothetical question we can never answer is how he would have looked in the 49ers or Dolphins offenses, surrounded by weapons and competent coaching. While we can’t definitively answer that question it’s safe to assume he would have looked much better in San Francisco or Miami last year than he did in Carolina.

Truth No. 2 – Bryce Young didn’t play well. Throughout the season Young seemed to be a beat slow in processing reads and made a host of questionable decisions. He had the second-lowest QRB among qualified quarterbacks. He had the highest Bad Throw Percentage in the league, which matches what we saw with our naked eyes. He took the second most sacks in the NFL. And what’s most concerning is Bryce didn’t make noticeable improvement as the season went along. The mistakes he was making in Weeks 17 and 18 were similar to the ones he made earlier on in the season.

Truth No. 3 – Bryce Young will always be 5-foot-10. This is a major concern. So few short quarterbacks succeed in the NFL and Young’s height, unfortunately, cannot be changed.

The questions that should be answered in the next year or two is just how much Truth No. 1 (horrible situation) impacted Truth No. 2 (subpar play). The hope for Panthers fans is that Carolina’s new coaching staff, system, and schemes will put Young in a better position to succeed. The offensive line should improve when guards Brady Christensen and Austin Corbett return. The Panthers front office absolutely must add a couple of legitimate receiving weapons through free agency and the draft.

Bryce Young isn’t the first highly-drafted quarterback to lay an egg in his rookie season. He stepped in to the toughest job in professional sports while playing for perhaps the worst run franchise in the NFL. It’s not unprecedented for highly-drafted quarterbacks to struggle as rookies then figure things out over the next year or two, which is the hope for Bryce Young.

What former highly-drafted QBs struggled as rookies but rebounded?

If you want examples of franchise quarterbacks who struggled out of the gate but improved over time, here are some precedents:

Matthew Stafford, the No. 1 overall pick in 2009, went 2-8 as a rookie. He completed just 53% of his passes and threw 13 touchdowns to a whopping 20 interceptions. He has now thrown for 56,000-plus career yards, won a Super Bowl, and has made two Pro Bowls.

Jared Goff was the No. 1 pick in 2016. As a rookie he went 0-7 as a starter, completed just 55% of his passes, and threw five touchdowns against seven interceptions. Over the next two seasons he went 24-7 and made back-to-back Pro Bowls. He’s now leading the resurgent Detroit Lions, made his third Pro Bowl in 2022, and was a Pro Bowl alternate in 2023.

Baker Mayfield was the No. 1 overall pick in 2018. He’s currently playing for his fourth team in six seasons and just made his first Pro Bowl by leading the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to an NFC South title and a Wild Card playoff win.

Josh Allen was the No. 7 pick in 2018 and in his rookie season completed 53% of his throws with 10 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. He’s now a three-time Pro Bowler.

Trevor Lawrence, the No. 1 pick in 2021 and considered a generational talent, struggled as a rookie going 3-14 and completing less than 60% of his passes. He threw just 12 touchdowns against a league-high 17 interceptions in his first NFL campaign. The Jaguars fired first-year coach Urban Meyer 13 games into Lawrence’s rookie season, a situation which is similar to what Bryce Young endured with Frank Reich. After Jacksonville cleaned house and Lawrence shook off his rookie jitters, he made the Pro Bowl the following season.

But aren’t there a ton of examples of early QB picks who struggle as rookies and turn out to be busts?

Yes, there are, but we’re not going to invoke the names of Jamarcus Russell, Jameis Winston, or Blake Bortles in this space today. We’re going to give Bryce Young some grace before we go there.

How long should Panthers fans wait on Bryce before hitting the panic button?

I’m going to preach patience. Bryce Young is about to inherit his third head coach and third play caller as he beings his second NFL season.

Whether we like it or not, 2024 is going to be a reset for the Panthers second year signal caller. The goal in 2024 is for Bryce Young to make continued progress throughout the year and hopefully look like an average NFL quarterback by season’s end.

2025 will be the make-or-break season.

If midway through the 2025 campaign Bryce Young still looks like a low-end quarterback, then it will be okay to hit the panic button. But let’s give him 25 games or so under new head coach Dave Canales and his staff before going there.

So if you want a specific date when it’s okay to panic, it’s November 3, 2025.