(Photo by Reddit)
BREAKING NEWS: THE CAROLINA PANTHERS HAVE BENCHED BRYCE YOUNG; ANDY DALTON IS NOW THE STARTER.
Everyone saw this coming. For the past few years, the Carolina Panthers have been a train wreck. The reason is obvious, more on that later. Carolina had the worst record in the league last season and could have the #1 pick to get Caleb Williams, only one problem, Carolina traded that pick before the 2023 draft when the Bears had the first pick. The Panthers wanted their franchise quarterback, and they had their choice of former California high school prospects, Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud. I liked Stroud since he was NFL ready from the start. Young had potential, but if he sat for a portion of the season, he could get some knowledge and learn how to survive the rigors of an NFL season.
The Panthers chose Young over Stroud at 1. Okay, as long as you don't start him right away, then it will be.....you started him in the opener. Oh boy. This is where things start to snowball.
Right off the bat, Young looked flustered and overmatched. When you build a squad that causes the quarterback to regress instead of flourish, that's alarming. The signing of Miles Sanders has flopped, Adam Thielen is old at receiver, the offensive line isn't making Bryce's life easier, and the defense doesn't really tackle or cover. What's worse is that their best defensive player, Derrick Brown, is out for the season. As you can tell, I have been defending Bryce to this point, but he does have flaws.
The one flaw that jumps out is his tendency to throw off his back foot. The clinching pick-six against Georgia was from his back foot. He also tends to stay in the pocket way too long. He is elusive enough to know to escape the pressure and gain yards with your feet. Also, stepping up to make the throw can help with accuracy. The last flaw was brought to my attention when I was watching highlights of him at Alabama. When you see the ball that he throws, what do you notice? It flutters. A lot of quarterbacks in the league throw tight spirals to their receivers. A tight spiral can travel faster to a receiver while a ball that flutters is easier for a defender to make a play on. All of these flaws could be fixed if you try to develop him well.
Okay, I don't want to make a comparison, but I'm going to have to. CJ Stroud was drafted by Houston with the #2 pick. The Texans have a running game with Joe Mixon, receivers like Tank Dell, Nico Collins and Stefon Diggs. a quality tight end in Dalton Schultz, strong offensive line play from Laremy Tunsil. The defense has studs as Will Anderson Jr. and Derek Stingley Jr. They hired a head coach in DeMarco Ryans that has a vision of success as the Texans reach for a long playoff run. The Panthers don't have that vision as they continue to sputter.
And why does this happen? Well, ask David Tepper, owner of the franchise. Since purchasing the Panthers in 2018, Ol' Tepps has done more than enough to put his fingerprints on this team. He's overpaid coaches, he's overpaid free agents, he snaps at reporters after they ask tough questions, and he throws drinks at fans when his team is getting blown out. This man is the definition of petty. He also enjoys meddling with the football operations. You see, he wanted Young over Stroud. Then-head coach Frank Reich was dead set on Stroud. Doesn't matter, David signs the checks so he gets the final say. Young wasn't ready from day one, and they knew that. Also, tensions have ran high as players like Jaycee Horn are blasting the fans for booing. Apparently, Tepper's attitude has seep down into his players. What did you expect?
Hopefully, the Panthers and Bryce Young can find their way. If not, David Tepper could have another moment of buffoonery.
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