The Carolina Panthers Franchise Quarterback’s 2026 Pivotal Season Incoming
When the Panthers drafted Bryce Young, they were ushering in a new era of Carolina football. The Panthers made a franchise-altering trade to secure Young with the first overall pick of the 2023 draft. A college phenom at Alabama, Young was the consensus best quarterback in the draft. Looking to build upon his most promising as a pro, the future of the Panthers hinges on Young’s upcoming season.
A Brief Prelude
The start of Young’s career in Carolina was tumultuous to say the least. Before the draft, the Panthers hired former Colts head coach Frank Reich. The first order of business was to address the quarterback situation. Ready to make a splash, the Panthers traded receiver DJ Moore, two first-round picks, and a second-round pick. Unfortunately, lacking their main receiving option and a lackluster offensive line, the team suffered. Carolina finished in last place, with a 2-15 record.
To make matters worse, the Panthers fired Reich after a 1-10 start, and the rest of his staff soon followed. Young had one of his worst seasons, finishing with 2,877 passing yards, 11 touchdowns, 10 interceptions, and a 59.8% completion rate. The team’s best receiver was a 33-year-old Adam Thielen, who they signed in free agency. The offensive line was abysmal, with Young taking 62 sacks, 243 quarterback pressures, and a 39.2% pressure rate. Only second to Commanders quarterback Sam Howell, but not by much.
After a disappointing first season into the rebuild, the front office looked to fill their holes at head coach and general manager. Former general manager Scott Fitterer was fired shortly after the 2023 season. First, naming Dan Morgan as the general manager. Morgan was a former player and assistant gm for the Panthers. Next, they scooped up Buccaneers offensive coordinator Dave Canales. Canales was a rising star in the coaching world and had garnered a reputation for rehabbing quarterbacks. The team got to work once free agency started, signing two big-name offensive linemen in Robert Hunt and Damien Lewis. In the draft, the Panthers traded into the first round to nab receiver Xavier Legette out of South Carolina. In one offseason, the Panthers geared the team towards Young’s success. The offense improved overall, but not before a motivational benching for the former Heisman winner. After a rough stretch at the start of the season, the coaching staff decided to bench Young starting in Week Three, and he didn’t return to the starting lineup until Week Five. Young finished the season on a heater. He showed some clear improvement, but it didn’t all show in the stats: 2,401 passing yards, 15 touchdowns, nine interceptions, and a 60.9% completion rate through 12 starts. The offseason additions also showed out with a 1,000-yard rusher in Chuba Hubbard, and half of the sacks and pressures.
The offseason brought more free agent additions, primarily on the defensive side of the ball. The Panthers had the league's worst defense in 2024. The biggest news for the Panthers was the addition of wide receiver Tetairoa McMillian, whom they drafted with the eighth pick of the 2025 draft. TMac proved to be the crucial missing piece of the puzzle. With the addition of TMac and the return of 2024 undrafted free agent Jalen Coker, Young had his best season to date. Young finished 2025 with 3,011 passing yards, 23 touchdowns, 11 interceptions, and a 63.3% completion rate. He broke the franchise single-game receiving record with 448 passing yards in Week 11. TMac also broke two franchise records, becoming the first rookie in franchise history to have a 1,000-yard receiving season and win the Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. Achieving a playoff berth and multiple upsets, the season was up and down from start to finish. Now, with the backdrop set, we can look into Young’s improvement and what’s next.
Improvement Year by Year: A Look at the Numbers
We briefly touched on the numbers in our prelude, but now we can take a deeper look at some of the analytics. As previously stated, 2022 was a rough year for both the Panthers and Young. The offensive line was one of the most crucial factors affecting Young’s game. Like most rookie quarterbacks, Young held the ball too long. He averaged 2.90 seconds to throw. The former Alabama standout’s average placed him as the ninth-longest time to throw, but the only one to have over 60 sacks. While still adjusting to NFL speed, it didn’t help that Young was the second-most-pressured quarterback in the league. Young was held mostly to short-yardage work, with most of his throws under 10 yards, and an average aDot of 7.8 yards. He excelled here, passing for 1,265 yards, seven touchdowns, and two interceptions on 281 attempts with a completion percentage of 80%. Reich ran a heavy West Coast offensive scheme, with the intention of using Young’s accuracy. There was also very little play option, and RPO plays ran. It was clear the Reich wanted to focus on Young’s strengths of being a fast passer and accurate thrower. The offense fell apart without a competent line and a lack of talent in the skill positions.
Canales came in with a run-first mentality. Establishing a run game is key to his scheme, and the Panthers went right to work beefing up the line. In addition to an upgrade at the line, the Panthers drafted running back Jonathon Brooks out of Texas in the second round of the 2024 draft. Even though Brooks was coming off an ACL tear from college, it was a clear move to show that the Panthers are committed to the run game. To add more firepower for Young, the Panthers traded back into the first round to draft Legette. The way was that while Legette was still a raw prospect, he would grow alongside his young quarterback. The former Crimson Tide again struggled to start the season. He suffered greatly from a revolving door of coaches at the start of his career. Despite the rough start, his numbers improved. With reduced attempts, down from 527 to 384, it’s important to look at some of the stickier stats. With fewer attempts and fewer passing yards, he increased his completion percentage to 60.9%, with 15 touchdowns and nine interceptions. His time to throw was also way down from 2.90 seconds to 2.79 seconds. Canales gave Young more opportunities to air it out with an uptick in deep passes, up to 53 attempts from 47 overall passing attempts. Canales’ offense is based on connecting the rushing and passing game, allowing them to help each other. He keeps simple concepts that allow for more complex executions across different personnel packages. The snaps reflect this, staying in a shotgun offense with few RPOs and play actions.
Coming into 2025, the offense stayed mostly the same personnel-wise. Legette was lackluster in his rookie season, and the team expected him to take another step in 2025. Along with Legette was the return of Coker, who flashed potential in his rookie season. The two biggest additions of the offseason for the offense were free agent running back Rico Dowdle and the drafting of TMac. Brooks tore his ACL shortly after returning in 2024, leaving the Panthers in need of depth at the position. The Panthers rewarded Hubbard in the offseason, coming off his 1,195 rushing season, with a four-year, $33 million extension. TMac hit the ground running, immediately becoming Young’s favorite target.
A big body that can get open and make big-time catches was crucial to open up the field for Young. When Coker returned to action, he became another reliable target, providing a safety blanket for his quarterback. Coker was also a clutch player, making catches when it mattered most, and even better, Young was able to get them to him when it mattered most. In the back half of the season, Canales entrusted this season's biggest games to their former first overall pick. From Week 15 onward, Young never fell below 30 dropbacks. Canales ran the run game to the wayside either because of the personnel or because Young was proving himself. The weakest part of the passing game is the middle of the field. The Panthers' franchise quarterback was excelling in the deep ball for the first time in his career. On 41 attempts, Young had a 48% completion percentage but had eight touchdowns to two interceptions. His completion percentage reached a career high of 63.6%, and his time to throw went up to 2.83 seconds, but was between his rookie and sophomore seasons. The biggest issue with Young in 2025 was his inconsistency. Setting a franchise record in Week 11 but failing to surpass 54 passing yards in Week 17. He also took big steps in game composure. Staying relaxed under pressure, using his legs to scramble when the pocket collapsed, and coming up big in clutch moments.
The Pivotal 2026 Season
The Panthers have already picked up Young’s fifth option, meaning he is due for an extension soon. It’s unclear what Young will ask for, but I can’t imagine it’s not starting-quarterback money. Former first-overall quarterbacks Joe Burrow and Trevor Lawrence both signed five-year, $275 million contracts in 2023 and 2024, respectively, at an AAV of $55 million. Former Mr. Irrelevant Brock Purdy signed a five-year, $265 million extension in 2025, with an AAV of $53 million. What these three quarterbacks have in common is a Pro Bowl selection. Burrow also has two Comeback Player of the Year Awards. Young has yet to achieve a Pro-Bowl selection, and all three quarterbacks have led their teams to multiple playoff appearances and deep playoff runs.
Young still has two years left on his contract, but if he doesn’t keep moving forward, the Panthers might look for an out. He does deserve some grace because of the state of the roster in his rookie season. Now that the team has made a playoff appearance, the standard will have been raised. Based on Young’s improvement each season, it is a safe bet to say that he will take the next step. In the last games of the season, Young looked comfortable and confident in the pocket. He moved well, made good throws, and kept the pace. The team still lacks explosiveness, averaging only 18.6 points per game, the sixth-worst in the league.
Canales has said he is giving play-calling duties to offensive coordinator Brad Idzik. Other issues include whether the Panthers can re-sign starting center Cade Mays and the major injury Ikem Ekwonu sustained in Week 15. Ekwonu suffered a ruptured patella tendon, which requires surgery and will sideline him for most of, if not all of 2026. Mays is headed for free agency unless the Panthers come out with a deal. Two major players for the offensive line that may not return in 2026. The Panthers still have free agency and the 19th pick in the draft. Currently, the Panthers only have $7.3 million in cap space. Carolina has other holes to address, primarily at linebacker and pass rusher, but Morgan has stated that he will draft the best player available. Regardless, with another year under Canales and his offense, Young is sure to take the next step.
