Panthers-Bears Trade for Bryce Young Still Haunts Carolina in Latest Mock

The Carolina Panthers traded an absolute haul for Bryce Young in 2023. After the 2025 draft, the trade was officially resolved, but by then, the Panthers had sent the Chicago Bears a treasure trove of assets.

No matter what happens with Young, it is one of the most lopsided trades in NFL history. The Panthers can never really come out on top of this deal. You might think that the Panthers are at least out of the woods on it now.

However, according to one NFL insider, it still lingers over the franchise, and it's a big reason why they're going to draft Kenyon Sadiq in the first round this year.

Panthers pick Kenyon Sadiq to continue trying to make Bryce Young better

Oregon Ducks tight end Kenyon Sadiq (18) looks on before the game against the James Madison Dukes | Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

The Panthers invested so much in Bryce Young that they have continued to try and give him plenty of help on offense. It's the sunk-cost fallacy, but it's pretty common for teams to try and make their foolish moves work out.

Young has improved over the last three seasons, but the Panthers can't just stop giving him weapons. He still needs more, and that's how the trade is still haunting the Panthers in the NFL draft all these years later.

CBS Sports insider Tom Fornelli believes they'll pick Kenyon Sadiq 19th overall so that they can continue trying to make the Young trade work out better in their favor.

"This would be [three] straight years of using a first-round pick on a pass-catcher, but when you've used a No. 1 overall pick on Bryce Young (not to mention the capital that went into acquiring the pick), you have to keep doing everything you can to give him weapons," Fornelli wrote.

The Panthers used a ton of their assets and the first overall pick to get Young, so while he's still on his rookie contract, it makes sense to try and flood his offense with playmakers to make his life easier. The problem is, it hasn't always worked out.

The Xavier Legette pick (the first in what could be three consecutive pass-catchers in the first round) was awful. At this point, he's a bust. The Ja'Tavion Sanders and Mitchell Evans picks haven't fixed the gaping hole at tight end.

Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young (9) drops back to pass against the Los Angeles Rams | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

So far, Jonathon Brooks (who, like Legette, was traded up for in 2024) hasn't panned out, either. He's about to try and make a comeback from a second torn ACL on the same knee suffered within 13 months of each other.

Jimmy Horn Jr. isn't providing much, either. The Panthers have tried to give him weapons, and they seem to want to continue trying. That's not necessarily a problem. The problem is that most of the choices haven't worked out. Maybe this one will.