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Through the first half of the 2023 NFL season, the Carolina Panthers have trailed the Houston Texans quite decidedly in the first-round quarterback sweepstakes. While C.J. Stroud of the Texans has made the Offensive Rookie of the Year contest redundant and is starting to get legitimate NFL MVP talk, Bryce Young of the Panthers is still trying to find his feet.
Stroud has completed 173 of 279 passes (62.0%) for 2,270 yards (8.1 YPA), 14 touchdowns, one interceptions, and a passer rating of 102.9. He ranks second in DVOA and third in DYAR among all NFL quarterbacks this season — not just rookies.
Coming into Thursday night’s game against the Chicago Bears, Young has completed 161 of 252 passes (63.9%) for 1,375 yards (5.5 YPA), eight touchdowns, seven interceptions, and a passer rating of 77.1. He ranks second-to-last in the NFL behind Daniel Jones of the New York Giants in DYAR, and third-to-last in DVOA behind Jones and P.J. Walker of the Cleveland Browns.
Stroud is the Texans’ franchise quarterback without any doubt, while Panthers head coach Frank Reich is fielding questions about whether he should bench Young in favor of Andy Dalton.
“I suppose that’s a fair question,” Reich said after Carolina’s 27-13 Week 9 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. “But I can honestly tell you that thought’s never even came close to my mind.”
Whether or not the Panthers might eventually sit their first overall pick if things keep going the ways in which they’re going, things are bad with this team and this quarterback.
“I think it’s just understanding that, good or bad, you have to be able to turn the page,” Young said after the Colts loss. “Whatever it is you’ve done, positive or negative, doesn’t entitle you to anything next week and doesn’t entitle you to the next opponent. So just the importance of context.
“We’re all competitors. We all feel this. We’re going to feel this loss. I certainly do.”
“It is what it is. But at the same time, that doesn’t entitle me to anything, good or bad, moving forward. And in the NFL, no one feels sorry for anyone. And we have the opportunity where we have to turn the page, and we have to do it quickly. It’s a great opportunity for us to be able to bounce back.”
Nobody feels sorry for Young, and until he stops repeating some mistakes that have led to a lot of those seven interceptions, he’s going to have issues… because the recurrent themes are problematic for any quarterback.
So, let’s get into what those themes are.