The Carolina Panthers currently have a Bryce Young problem on their hands. A problem that is almost entirely of their own doing. The Panthers made the somewhat controversial decision to bench Young heading into last week’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders and turn to backup quarterback Andy Dalton. Dalton came in and immediately gave the Panthers better quarterback play than they’ve gotten for most – if not all – of the Bryce Young era.
The initial decision to bench Young sparked myriad trade rumors, both from media across the NFL landscape, and within NFL front offices. It’s been reported that several teams went so far as to reach out to the Panthers to gauge their interest in trading the former #1 overall pick. As of now, there is no indication that the Panthers are willing to trade their young quarterback, with the team flat-out stating that they have no intention of trading Young at this time.
But there’s a belief within some NFL circles that it’s only a matter of time before the Panthers begin to re-think that decision – if that’s the decision they’ve come to at all. That process may be quickened if Dalton continues to play like he did on Sunday and continues to drag down what little value Young may have left. And therein lies the problem: The value that Carolina thinks Bryce Young carries may not be in line with how other teams actually view him.
According to The Athletic’s Carolina Panthers beat writer Joe Person, it would make sense that the Panthers are looking to get at least a second-round pick back for the #1 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, as the Panthers gave up two second-round picks, among other pieces, for the chance to draft the former Alabama Crimson Tide product. Person reached out to several other team’s beat writers to gauge their team’s interest in the quarterback and what a potential trade may look like. Person only got three responses, from the beat writers for the Raiders, Miami Dolphins, and Tennessee Titans.
Neither the Raiders nor the Dolphins were willing to go as high as the Panthers may want. Both teams offered just a fourth-round pick in this mock effort to acquire Young. That offer is more-or-less in line with what we’ve seen other young veterans go for on the open market. The Titans’ offer is a bit more intriguing, though, as their beat writer offered up current starting quarterback Will Levis along with a fifth-round pick.
Levis is an intriguing name to include in trade talks, but may not carry much weight with the Panthers specifically. Panthers’ GM Dan Morgan was part of the evaluation process during the 2023 NFL Draft when the Panthers were evaluating all of the top quarterbacks in the class, including Levis.
What’s clear from this exercise is that public perception of Young may not mesh with the internal perception the Panthers may have of their quarterback. If the Panthers are indeed set on recouping some of the assets they gave up to get Young, it may be in their best interest to simply hold on to Young for now and hope that his time on the bench gives him the perspective and shift he needs to come back stronger than ever.
