No, It's Not Time to Panic on Carolina Panthers QB Bryce Young

For the first time this preseason, Bryce Young was out on the field for the Carolina Panthers. As reported, he did not see the field much, but he had multiple series to make his mark on the Panthers' offense.

He has had a really good camp, and the internal belief, both in the organization and the media, is that he's about to have the best year of his career. After his first preseason action, none of that translated to the field.

Young's final line against the Buffalo Bills was pretty uninspiring: 3/5 for 18 yards, no touchdowns, no turnovers, and one sack taken for a 67.1 RTG. Ultimately, though, it doesn't matter, and it's not at all time to panic on the fourth-year QB.

Don't panic about Bryce Young just yet

Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young (9) warms up before a pre-season game | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

At the end of the day, preseason doesn't matter. It is encouraging when players, like, for example, Josh Allen on the other side, do really well in their limited action, but it ultimately doesn't matter. Bryce Young could be terrible for the entire preseason, and it may not have any bearing on his play in Week 1.

There are so many reasons preseason is not an predicter of future success. First and foremost, the sample size is tiny. Even though Young had multiple series, he didn't have that many plays. Sometimes, it takes time to get into the flow of a game, and Young is notorious for finishing better than he starts. There isn't time for that to manifest in preseason.

In the preseason, teams aren't tipping their hands in the play-calling department, so this offense was a watered-down version of what the Panthers hope to run in the regular season. The reps matter, but the results kind of don't. That's true of any player, but especially the quarterback.

Secondly, this particular game doesn't matter because Young wasn't horrendous or anything. The final line is not good, but that doesn't mean the performance was. It's not like Young was missing open guys, turning the ball over, or running into sacks.

There was a good gain called back for an inconsequential penalty. The play-calling was strangely vanilla, in that the calls were largely for short passes. The receivers rarely got open. The offensive line was not good, even when paired against the backup defenders.

Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young (9) talks with a coach during training camp | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Chuba Hubbard, Robert Hunt, and Damien Lewis didn't play, and the latter two are huge, glaring losses for the Panthers, and Young in particular.

So, yes, it was ugly for the Panthers, and Young did nothing of note. But there's zero reason to panic about that right now.

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