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Although his sentiment may be viewed as a wise one, Carolina Panthers general manager Scott Fitterer didn’t put Bryce Young’s name on a card to sit him behind Andy Dalton this season. With high draft status comes a high degree of expectations, which this year’s No. 1 pick is primed to meet.
While the 5-foot-10, 200-pound passer is not of the prototypical build for what head coach Frank Reich has worked with under center, Young should still thrive in all other aspects in what’s sure to be a layered and complicated offense. His elite playmaking ability, top-tier accuracy and machine-like processing should also make for an early splash at the NFL level—as he’s already been playing like a pro quarterback for the past two years of his college career.
Young’s skill set will allow Carolina to spread the ball around to their weapons, even if they’re not the most heralded group in the game. That group, however, does have its defined roles—with DJ Chark as the deep threat, Adam Thielen as the dice-it-up slot target and Terrace Marshall Jr. and/or Jonathan Mingo as the big-bodied ‘X’ receivers.
Given that he’s still likely to start the entire campaign, we can project a fairly productive season for the former Heisman Trophy winner. Expect him to come in right away, command the offense and avoid the typical bumps and bruises of an early rookie—with an already savvy understanding of how to play this game at a high level.
Projected Stats:
| Passing yards | Passing touchdowns | Interceptions | Rushing yards | Rushing touchdowns | Record |
| 3,800 | 24 | 9 | 250 | 3 | 9-8 |
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