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).
This makes Young the first quarterback selected as the No. 1 pick in the Common Draft era (since 1967) to be benched for non-injury-related reasons.
The Panthers traded with the Chicago Bears to get the 2023 No. 1 overall pick and draft Young, who is 0-2 this season. His Total QBR this season (8.9) is the third-worst over a two-game span since ESPN began using that metric in 2011.
The Panthers were outscored 73-13 in the first two weeks, with their only touchdown coming on a Young run that was initially ruled a fumble. The 60-point margin is the worst by a team in the first two games since 2019.
Carolina’s offensive efficiency rating (0.70) through two games ranks last in 608 cases for Weeks 1 and 2 since it was first tracked in 2006, and they have converted two of 22 third-down opportunities, the worst in the NFL.
The list goes on and on, but ultimately the Panthers believe Dalton gives them a better chance to win after spending the offseason improving 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 analyze what led to the move and what it means for the future.
Why was it not viable to keep Young as a starter?
Receiver Adam Thielen, who was visibly upset on the sidelines on Sunday after Young was sacked on a third-down play when Thielen was completely free, said after the 26-3 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers that this was “not a Bryce Young problem.” He specifically emphasized how much he loved Young and would fight for him. That was the mood of the players in the entire locker room.
Coach Dave Canales didn’t seem to be in a hurry to make a change after the game. When asked who would start Sunday against the Raiders, he said, “Bryce Young is our quarterback.”
So Young hasn’t lost the locker room. What he has done is he’s lost two games by a total of 60 points and failed to throw a touchdown pass, while never looking confident on offense and continuing to make poor decisions. And he’s failed to adopt Canales’ quarterback-friendly scheme that has helped Baker Mayfield (Tampa Bay), Geno Smith (Seattle) and Russell Wilson (Seattle) improve in the past.
Canales knew that benching Young would send a negative message to the locker room. He also knew that the Panthers wouldn’t have a realistic chance of winning if they didn’t bench Young. — Newton
How bad were the Panthers at the beginning of the season?
According to my DVOA ratings, the Panthers have been historically bad entering the 2024 season. Through Week 2, they have the ninth-worst overall DVOA of 1,397 teams going back to 1979. The offense is even worse, ranking seventh-worst of any team through Week 2. It’s not just Young who has been awful, as the Panthers are at the bottom of the pile in pass DVOA and 31st in rush DVOA, ahead of only this week’s opponent, the Las Vegas Raiders.
If we look at history, the Panthers’ season can’t be written off completely. Mostly written off, sure. But the second-worst offense of all time through Week 2 belonged to the 1989 Steelers. That team lost its first two games by a combined score of 92-10, then rebounded, finished the season 9-7, and made the playoffs. (The worst offense of all time through Week 2 belonged to the Texans, who joined the team in 2002, and they were terrible all season.)
Another interesting comparison would be the 2001 Washington team, which had the fifth-worst offense of all time through Week 2. That team benched quarterback Jeff George and traded 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 and benching last year’s first-overall draft pick.
Other teams with the worst offense of all time through Week 2 include the 2019 Dolphins, the 2006 Raiders, the 2013 Jaguars and the Browns, who joined the team in 1999. — Treasure
What options does Carolina have for the future?
The only option is clear: hope for the best with Dalton while giving Young the opportunity behind the scenes to realign everything for a possible – if not far-fetched – rebirth.
The only benefit of benching Young so early is that they have him to fall back on, and this move sort of saves him from himself after two terrible weeks. But most people around the league I’ve spoken to were at least mildly surprised by the move — especially since Carolina is considered one of the least talented teams in the NFL. People on the Panthers team are surprised. They knew Young’s play would land him on the bench at some point if he didn’t improve, but two weeks is a quick bait and switch.
A veteran NFL personnel executive had a different opinion. “They had to bench this guy,” he said. “The offense wasn’t functioning.”
Coach Dave Canales will rely on the experience and skill of Dalton, whose career winning percentage of 50.9 percent plays a big role here. I was told several times this offseason that Dalton has been good at putting pressure on Young in practice – always after praising Young’s development. I didn’t take that as a signal to put Dalton on my Week 3 bingo card.
“Maybe (Canales) thought he was beyond repair,” said an AFC manager. “In our league, there is not much patience and development left. You play early and have to deliver results quickly.” — Fowler
What can we expect from Andy Dalton?
Dalton has a relentlessly positive attitude and a calm demeanor. He is never too high or too low and the Panthers desperately need that right now with so much going wrong.
Although Dalton is no longer a full-time starter, he has started 30 games for four different teams since losing his starting spot with the Cincinnati Bengals after the 2019 season. He has experience in virtually 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 as a replacement for Jameis Winston in 2022 and were so impressed with his play that they kept him as a regular starter after Winston was injured early in the season.
Dalton may not be the type of quarterback who can improve his teammates’ play on offense. He’s usually as good as the supporting players around him. But Dalton certainly won’t make things worse.
Dalton’s best seasons in Cincinnati are long gone, but there’s a reason teams have consistently turned to him as a starter over the past few years. He knows how to lead a struggling team, and he’ll minimize mistakes to help them squeeze out some wins. — Terrell
Who could Carolina select as quarterback in the 2025 draft?
The Panthers have arguably the worst roster in the NFL right now. Aside from defensive end Derrick Brown, who is out for the rest of the season with a knee injury, there aren’t many pillars to build on. So what lies ahead in 2025?
If the Panthers decide to move on from Young, they could select another playmaker at the top of the draft, as they own their 2025 first-round pick. 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 quick start is already catapulting him up draft boards.
However, the 2025 QB selection isn’t nearly as strong as 2024, when a record-breaking six passers were drafted within the first 12 picks, so perhaps the Panthers decide to go in a different direction with their first-round pick.
If Carolina decides to wait to select a QB, the focus could turn to signing an offensive or defensive playmaker. Colorado WR/CB Travis Hunter, Tennessee edge James Pearce Jr. or Georgia edge Mykel Williams could all be immediate additions. The Panthers could also consider a trade with a team looking to sign a top QB. That would allow them to acquire more draft capital for 2025 or future picks to bolster a roster that currently lacks top-tier young talent. — Reid
Do the Panthers even have a chance of getting back into the race for the NFC South?
I highly doubt that. Yes, Young was a big problem. But (almost) two weeks into the season, this team also ranked 30th in defensive EPA per play allowed, 24th in pass block win rate, and 28th in run block win rate. These are all areas that have little to do with quarterback play and will likely continue to cause problems even after the quarterback change. Their best player on defense, Brown, is on the injured list and out for the rest of the season.
I think Carolina improves its offense with the quarterback change, but the idea of Dalton – who has a QBR of 48 since the start of 2021 – moving into the The Making the team a contender for the division title seems far-fetched. After all, the Panthers have a 0.3% chance of making the playoffs and a 0.1% chance of winning the NFC South. — Walder
