Bryce Young benched by Panthers after QB’s rough start; Andy Dalton will start vs. Raiders

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Carolina Panthers have benched 2023 No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young after the second-year quarterback’s rough start to the season.

Andy Dalton will take over as the starter for Carolina’s next game on Sunday at Las Vegas.

Panthers head coach Dave Canales said he made the decision after watching game film from Sunday’s 26-3 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.

He informed both QBs of the decision on Monday after consulting with general manager Dan Morgan and vice president of football operations Brandt Tilis.

“After watching the film and taking in all of the information I feel like Andy gives us the best chance to win,” Canales said.

Canales wouldn’t say if Dalton will remain the starter beyond this week saying “right now the focus is on this week.”

Canales also wouldn’t say exactly what led to the decision to bench Young.

“I don’t want to get into the specifics as those are private conversations,” Canales said.

Canales had worked with Geno Smith in Seattle and Baker Mayfield in Tampa Bay, helping turn their careers around. He was hired in part to get the most out of Young, who struggled last season as a rookie with nearly as many interceptions (10 ) as touchdown passes (11).

But Young’s struggles as a rookie have carried over to this year.

He’s completed just 31 of 56 passes for 244 yards with three interceptions as the Panthers have started 0-2 this season for the second straight year and have been outscored 73-13 by the New Orleans Saints and Chargers. Young has run for one touchdown, the only one of the season for Carolina.

When asked if Young still has the support of the locker room, Canales said “that’s a loaded question. Right now our focus is to make sure that we fix the film from yesterday and get ready for the Raiders.”

Young is 2-16 as a starter overall since the Panthers traded up eight spots in the 2023 NFL draft to get him.

The Panthers made a significant investment in that deal with Chicago, sending wide receiver D.J. Moore and four draft picks to the Bears — one of which turned out to be the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft after the Panthers finished a league-worst 2-15 last season. The Bears used that pick to take quarterback Caleb Williams.

Young becomes the first quarterback selected No. 1 overall in the common draft era starting in 1967 to be benched for non-injury reasons in his second season.

He hasn’t looked much like a No. 1 overall pick since his arrival, continually looking flustered in the pocket and often making poor decisions and throwing into double coverage. His first throw this season was an interception against the Saints in the opener and things only seem to have gotten worse.

Young was booed repeatedly by the home crowd on Sunday after the offense stalled time and time again.

Carolina was 1 of 12 on third down conversions and the Panthers were outgained 349-159.

When asked about his confidence after the game, Young said, “I draw my confidence from the Lord. I’m very blessed. I’m grateful for this challenge. Not an ideal start, but God does everything for a reason. I have faith in that.”

Young said he needed to do a better job with his decision-making.

“You always want to make a play. You want to do something,” Young said. “Obviously, part of the position is being the game manager. Some bad instances of that on film today. I definitely take accountability for that.”

Dalton is 83-78-2 as a starting quarterback in the NFL, including one last season with the Panthers. He has thrown 246 touchdown passes and 144 interceptions since coming into the league in 2011 with Cincinnati.

Dalton said Monday he was surprised by the move, but is excited about the opportunity to start again in the NFL.

“When I came here, I wasn’t sure if I was going to get another opportunity, and so I’m really looking forward to it,” said Dalton, who missed a portion of training camp with a quad injury. “I’m excited about what’s ahead. And, you know, it’s a tough situation. I’ve been on both sides of it, and it’s hard. I mean, it’s hard on everybody, but for me, I mean, I’m looking forward to it.”

Panthers tight end Tommy Tremble said he still feels Young is a great quarterback and said the blame shouldn’t fall all on the QB’s shoulders.

“We haven’t done the best (as teammates) to help him show his ability,” Tremble said. “I’ve seen the flashes and what he does on a daily basis in practice. I think just together as a group I feel bad that we couldn’t show that on Sundays.”

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