Six questions on the Panthers' decision and what's next
After a 2-16 start to his NFL career, the Carolina Panthers are replacing quarterback Bryce Young with Andy Dalton for Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders (4:05 p.m. ET, CBS).
That makes Young the first quarterback selected No. 1 overall in the common draft era (since 1967) to be benched for non-injury reasons.
The Panthers traded with the Chicago Bears to acquire the 2023 No. 1 overall pick to draft Young, who is 0-2 this season. His Total QBR this season (8.9) is third worst over a two-game stretch since ESPN began using the metric in 2011.
The Panthers have been outscored 73-13 the first two weeks, with their only touchdown coming on a scramble by Young that initially was ruled a fumble. The 60-point differential is the worst by a team in the first two games since 2019.
Carolina’s offensive efficiency rating (.70) through two games ranks last out of 608 instances for Weeks 1-2 since it was first tracked in 2006, and they have converted two of 22 third-down opportunities, worst in the NFL.
The list goes on and on, but ultimately the Panthers believe Dalton gives them a better chance of winning after they spent the offseason making upgrades at the skill positions and offensive line to help Young.
ESPN’s Panthers reporter David Newton, Saints reporter Katherine Terrell, NFL draft analyst Jordan Reid, national NFL reporter Jeremy Fowler and NFL analysts Aaron Schatz and Seth Walder break down what led to the switch and what it means going forward.
Why wasn’t it sustainable to keep Young at starter?
Receiver Adam Thielen, who got visibly upset on the sideline Sunday after Young was sacked on a third-down play when Thielen was wide-open, said after the 26-3 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers this “isn’t a Bryce Young issue.” He went out of his way to say how much he loved Young and would fight for him. That was the mood of players throughout the locker room.
Coach Dave Canales didn’t seem in a hurry to make a change after the game, saying, “Bryce Young is our quarterback” when asked who would start Sunday against the Raiders.
So Young hasn’t lost the locker room. What he has done is lose two games by a combined 60 points and fail to throw a touchdown pass, while never looking comfortable running the offense and continuing to make bad decisions. And he failed to take command of Canales’ quarterback-friendly scheme that helped turn around Baker Mayfield (Tampa Bay), Geno Smith (Seattle) and Russell Wilson (Seattle) in the past.
Canales knew benching Young would send a negative signal to the locker room. He also knew not benching Young wouldn’t give the Panthers a realistic chance of winning. — Newton
Just how bad have the Panthers been to start the season?
The Panthers have been historically bad to start the 2024 season, according to my DVOA ratings. They have the ninth worst overall DVOA of 1,397 teams since 1979 through Week 2, going back to 1979. The offense is even lower, ranking as the seventh-worst offense of any team through Week 2. It’s not just Young who’s been awful, as the Panthers are dead last in pass DVOA and 31st in rush DVOA, ahead of only this week’s opponent, the Raiders.
If we look at history, the Panthers’ season can’t be completely written off yet. Mostly written off, sure. But the second-worst offense ever through Week 2 belonged to the 1989 Steelers. That team lost its first two games by a combined score of 92-10, then rebounded to finish the season 9-7 and make the playoffs. (The worst offense ever through Week 2 belonged to the 2002 expansion Texans, and they were horrible all season.)
Another interesting comparison would be the 2001 Washington team which had the fifth-worst offense ever through Week 2. That team benched quarterback Jeff George and went to Tony Banks after two games, then rebounded to finish the year 8-8. Of course, there’s a big difference between benching a 34-year-old veteran compared to benching last year’s No. 1 overall draft pick.
Other teams among the worst offenses ever through Week 2 include the 2019 Dolphins, 2006 Raiders, 2013 Jaguars and 1999 expansion Browns. — Schatz
What are the options for Carolina moving forward?
The only option is clear-cut: Hope for the best with Dalton while allowing Young to reset behind the scenes for an eventual — if not far-fetched — rebirth.
The one benefit of benching Young this early is they could go back to him, and this move sort of saves him from himself after two ghastly weeks. But most people inside the league who I’ve spoken to were at least mildly surprised by the move — especially as Carolina is considered one of the NFL’s most talent-deficient teams. People inside the Panthers building are surprised. They knew Young’s play would eventually get him benched if it didn’t improve, but two weeks is a quick hook.
One veteran NFL personnel man had a different take. “They had to bench that guy,” he said. “The offense was nonfunctional.”
Canales will rely on the experience and savvy of Dalton, whose 50.9 career win percentage looms large here. It was noted to me several times this offseason that Dalton did a good job of pushing Young in practice — always mentioned after praising Young’s growth. I didn’t take that as a signal to put Dalton on my Week 3 bingo card.
“Maybe [Canales] thought he was unfixable,” an AFC executive said. “There isn’t a lot of patience and development in our league anymore. You play early and need to produce quickly.” — Fowler
What can we expect from Andy Dalton?
Dalton has a relentless positive attitude and a calm demeanor. He never gets too high or low, and the Panthers desperately need that right now with so much going wrong.
While Dalton isn’t a full-time starter anymore, he has started 30 games for four different teams since he lost his starting job with the Cincinnati Bengals after the 2019 season. He has experience in essentially every situation, and when the Panthers play in Germany on Nov. 10, Dalton could make his fourth start in an international game.
The Saints brought him in to back up Jameis Winston in 2022 and liked his play enough to keep him as the permanent starter that season after Winston was injured early on.
Dalton might not be the type of quarterback who can elevate the play of his teammates on offense. He’s usually as good as the supporting cast around him. But Dalton certainly won’t make things worse.
It’s been a long time since Dalton’s best seasons in Cincinnati, but there is a reason teams have continually turned to him as a starter in the past few years. He knows how to lead a struggling team, and he’ll limit mistakes to help them scratch out some wins. — Terrell
Who could Carolina select at QB in the 2025 draft?
The Panthers arguably have the worst roster in the NFL right now. Outside of defensive end Derrick Brown, who is out for the season with a knee injury, there aren’t many foundational pieces to build on. So what lies ahead in 2025?
If the Panthers decide to move on from Young, they could pick another signal-caller atop the draft since they own their first-round pick in 2025. Georgia’s Carson Beck is currently the top-ranked passer in the 2025 class, while Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders and Texas’ Quinn Ewers are also viable options near the top. Miami’s Cam Ward is a wild card to keep an eye on, as his fast start is already catapulting him up draft boards.
That said, the 2025 QB crop isn’t nearly as strong as it was in 2024, when a record six passers were drafted within the first 12 picks. So maybe the Panthers decide to go another direction with their first-round choice.
If Carolina elects to wait on drafting a QB, its focus could turn to adding an offensive or defensive playmaker. Colorado WR/CB Travis Hunter, Tennessee edge James Pearce Jr. or Georgia edge Mykel Williams could all provide an immediate boost. The Panthers could also explore trading back with a team looking to take one of the top QBs. That would allow them to acquire more 2025 draft capital or future picks to bolster a roster that’s currently deprived of high-end young talent. — Reid
Do the Panthers have any shot to get back into the NFC South race?
I highly doubt it. Yes, Young was a huge problem. But through (almost) two weeks of the season, this team also ranked 30th in EPA per play allowed on defense, 24th in pass block win rate and 28th in run block win rate. Those are all areas that have little to do with quarterback play and will likely still remain issues after the quarterback change. Their best player on defense, Brown, is on injured reserve and done for the season.
I think Carolina is certainly upgrading its offense with the quarterback move, but the idea of Dalton — who has a 48 QBR since the start of 2021 — parachuting into this team and turning it into a division title contender seems far-fetched. After all, the Panthers have a 2.0% chance to make the playoffs and a 0.4% chance to win the NFC South. — Walder
