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The Carolina Panthers have named Bryce Young their starting quarterback, per Head Coach Frank Reich. The team just began their training camp at Wofford College, and Reich wanted to ensure there was no quarterback competition to distract his players. Young was drafted with the first overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft and is on track to be the first rookie quarterback to start Week 1 for the Panthers since Cam Newton in 2011.
It’s official: Bryce Young is Panthers starting QB, per HC Frank Reich.
— Cameron Wolfe (@CameronWolfe) July 26, 2023
Young has been extremely impressive so far this offseason, Now, it’s officially his team. pic.twitter.com/h2ZneU4OeR
Young will be looked upon to provide an immediate impact for Carolina. The team enters a new era with a new coaching staff, quarterback, running back and two new wide receivers. Young played in two full seasons for Alabama. Over 27 career games, he threw for 8,200 yards with 79 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. He isn’t a dual-threat quarterback per se, but he has enough scrambling ability to get out of the pocket when needed. Young added 185 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 49 carries in his final year for the Crimson Tide.
Taking a look at Newton’s rookie year, he played in all 16 games and had 4,051 passing yards with 21 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. While he didn’t look the part through the air, he set records among quarterbacks for his 706 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns on the ground his first year in the NFL. Young likely won’t be able to re-capture the rushing totals, but if he could finish with around 4,000 yards passing with 25+ touchdowns and fewer than 12 interceptions, the Panthers could be in for a solid year.