Carolina Panthers Rightfully Avoid Dubious QB Room Distinction

The Carolina Panthers have routinely been viewed as a team with one of the very worst quarterback situations in the NFL in recent years.

However, that is not the case in the mind of one analyst ahead of the 2026 season.

In an article listing the five best and worst quarterback rooms in the league, Carolina was not listed in the latter group by CBS Sports' Jordan Dajani.

Instead, the Arizona Cardinals, Atlanta Falcons, Miami Dolphins, New York Jets and Cleveland Browns made the cut, and mostly because they all have very shaky starting situations.

While nobody can claim that the Panthers are out of the woods yet when it comes to Bryce Young cementing himself as the team's long-term starter, they are at least moving in the right direction.

Young no doubt took a step forward in 2025 after posting career-highs in passing yards (3,011), touchdowns (23), completion rate (63.6%) and passer rating (87.8).

However, in what are signs that he still has work to do, Young also posted a career-high 11 interceptions and there were still too many negatives from his overall showing.

When compared to the Browns, Cardinals, Falcons, Jets and Dolphins, it's not hard to see why Young and the Panthers are ranked ahead of each.

Miami will be sporting Malik Willis, who has never been a full-time starter, the Falcons have two shaky options in Michael Penix Jr., who has more to prove than Young, and Tua Tagovailoa, who posted a career-worst season in 2025.

Arizona has Jacoby Brissett, who is a career backup and has a murky future ahead of training camp because he's holding out.

Geno Smith and Deshaun Watson are under center for the Jets and Browns, respectively, but Smith was one of the worst signal-callers in the NFL last season and Watson held that title the last time we saw him play in 2024. And, while Watson is the favorite, the veteran isn't even guaranteed to start and remains in a competition with the unproven Shedeur Sanders.

So, while the Panthers don't have a great situation under center until Young proves himself, it certainly could be worse.

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