Gerber: Yes, it's time for the Panthers to sit Bryce Young
Posted December 14, 2023 8:00 a.m. EST
Before we begin, I want to make it clear that this isn't Bryce Young's fault.
Young didn't ask the Panthers to mortgage their future to draft him. He didn't have a hand in constructing Carolina's talent-poor roster or installing the current scheme that doesn't seem to fit its offensive players.
Bryce Young is not the only problem. You can point to any number of plays from Sunday's embarrassing loss to the Saints to illustrate that point.
I've linked a few of them below:
I also want to establish that, generally, I would agree with interim coach Chris Tabor, who explained Monday why he's still planning on starting his struggling rookie quarterback for the rest of the season.
"I think one way to become a better football player is playin’ football,” said Tabor. “That’s a pretty simple statement. The only way you’re gonna gain experience in the National Football League is by playing."
That's very true, and I think that sports has skewed way too far in the direction of "Something bad happened. Let's bench Player X."
A professional athlete's job is to play all the games on his or her schedule, to the best of their ability. It's about battling through adversity and not quitting or "resting" if times get tough.
However, I feel like an exception is warranted in this case.
The time has come for the Panthers to sit Bryce Young. Here's why:
1. It's a serious injury risk
Bryce Young is the smallest quarterback in the NFL.
He's listed at 204 pounds, but it's pretty clear to see that his playing weight is much lower.
So the fact that Young has been sacked 48 times this season should be a huge concern for the Panthers, especially when it looks like this.
That is a mass of humanity falling on a very slender-framed 22-year old. The fact that he hasn't been seriously hurt already is an act of God.
Football is a violent game. Each player's body can only take a finite amount of punishment before it gives out.
Just look at Cam Newton, whose entire career changed after T.J. Watt hit and injured his right shoulder in 2018.
I know, I know, Bryce Young and Cam Newton are completely different players and should not be compared ... but that's also kind of my point.
If a 6'5" freak of nature like Cam can succumb to too many hits, why on earth would you want to put your 5'10" rookie in harm's way any more than absolutely necessary?
The Panthers have invested a lot into building their future around Bryce Young. Making sure he's healthy heading into the offseason is the correct business decision, icky as it may seem.
Besides, Young is going to have a much better chance at jelling with a new coaching staff if he's not stuck in the trainer's room.
2. Bad habits are creeping into his game
2nd & 10. 12 seconds to go in the first half.
The Panthers drew up an aggressive "shot" play to try to score before halftime. It worked. Jonathan Mingo was wide open for a touchdown.
Color analyst Jonathan Vilma astutely pointed out on the game broadcast that Young never set his feet on this throw, even though he had a clean pocket.
It's a bad habit that the rookie has been falling into more and more this season, likely due to the fact that he usually can't trust his protection.
On Sunday alone, Young attempted nine passes that went 20+ yards down the field (by far a season high), but he completed only one of them.
Deep ball accuracy has been a problem for the rookie all season, which is hard to believe if you watched him play in college. He's completing only 27% on passes of 20+ yards and has gotten even worse since Week 10, dipping down to 17.6% accuracy.
His receivers are part of the problem (as seen in the DJ Chark drop above), but so are Bryce's mechanics and footwork.
Allowing him to sit the rest of the season would allow Young to unlearn some of the bad habits he's picked up and get a fresh start in camp with a new staff and (presumably) a revamped receiving corps.
Continuing to throw him out there this year runs the risk of those habits becoming more ingrained and harder to get rid of down the line (see Carr, David).
3. Andy Dalton is a good person to learn from
As far as quarterback mentors go, you can do a lot worse than a 13-year veteran with three Pro Bowls and four playoff starts under his belt.
Andy Dalton has never been an elite talent, but he's worked himself into a very solid NFL career and still has something left in the tank. His 361-yard game against Seattle in Week 3 (with 2 touchdowns and 0 interceptions) remains the best game that a Carolina quarterback has played this season.
It'd be a different story if the Panthers backup quarterback was some 4th year nobody with zero playing experience. Andy Dalton has the know-how to lift up a bad roster around him and still perform at a fairly high level.
That's something that Bryce Young should study and emulate as much as possible, especially since the Panthers aren't likely to be contenders any time soon.
I understand the worries that a benched Young might lose confidence if Dalton were to perform better than him over the last four games. But if we're being honest, if that's Bryce's response (and I don't think it will be), he's probably not cut out to be "the guy" for an NFL franchise anyway.
If anything, I think the chance to sit back, with the pressure off, and learn from a veteran's example would be a welcome relief for the rookie. And it's something that I think he'd learn a great deal from.
Some of the best quarterbacks in the game had a chance to sit and study before they were forced into game action. Why shouldn't Bryce Young have that same opportunity?
4. What's the upside?
I've seen the argument that the only way for the Panthers to generate some hope for next season is to have Bryce Young play well and put up a couple 250-yard games down the stretch.
The likely reality is, that's just not going to happen.
In his last four games, Young has posted his two lowest yardage totals, two lowest completion rates, one total touchdown and has been sacked 19 times.
It's not getting better. It's getting worse.
As far as Chris Tabor's reasoning for playing Young (which is to get him more experience), I personally think 12 games of this is enough.
The next staff can see what Young is comfortable with and what he struggles with. They have enough film to study.
Continuing to play Young under this current scheme, with this current team around him, is like beating your head against the wall. We know what's going to happen.
Again, I appreciate coach Tabor's way of thinking and would normally support it, but this season is already a sunk cost and the future is the only thing that matters.
The Panthers need to cut their losses and try again next season.
