Bryce Young will have another opportunity in Carolina in Week 8, although not in the way he would have wanted or imagined
CHARLOTTE, North Carolina — The quarterback of the Carolina Panthers, Bryce YoungI hoped to have another chance to be a starter this season, but not under these circumstances.
The veteran Andy Dalton sprained his thumb of his right hand on Tuesday when suffered an accident with several cars while driving with his wife, three children and dog about seven miles from Bank of America Stadium.
The coach Dave Canales He called Young on Tuesday night to inform him he would be the starter Sunday in Denver and announced it publicly Wednesday after a practice in which the 2023 No. 1 draft pick took all of the first-team reps while Dalton watched.
“At first, what I heard was what I felt,” Young said, recalling that his thoughts initially were with Dalton and his family, not his opportunity.
Young was benched in favor of Dalton after an 0-2 start in which he threw three interceptions and no touchdowns. Dalton won his debut against the Las Vegas Raiders, but lost his last four starts for the Panthers (1-6).
Still, the plan was for Dalton to start against the Denver Broncos (4-3) until Tuesday’s accident.
“It was scary,” Dalton said of the accident. “It was the first time that [los niños] They had been through something like that. They were quite affected by it. “Everyone is healthy, which is the main thing we’re grateful for.”
Dalton, 36, would not go into details about how the accident occurred, other than that it involved a sudden stop in which all the airbags deployed.
“Now it’s a big lesson for us as parents, for them as children, to make sure you have your seat belt on… the priority of the importance of that,” Dalton said.
For Young, the last five weeks have been humbling; He was benched after finishing with a 2-16 overall record as a starter. His goal throughout the process was to stay consistent and improve, which he believes he did.
“There are definitely adversities,” he said when asked how challenging the situation was. “But I’m not the only person going through something, I’m not the only person struggling. “I just have to stay consistent.”
Canales said the hope is that Dalton can be the backup on Sunday. He said Dalton will be evaluated week to week in terms of who will start after that.
But Canales, in his first year as an NFL head coach, said Young has been an “absolute stud” with the way he has handled his bench.
“He’s been committed the whole time,” Canales said. “We’ve had great football conversations throughout the week, fine-tuning our game plans, on the sideline, talking about things.
“It’s great for him, he approached this difficult situation with so much class and integrity. Now it’s back to getting back out there and playing some football.”
This isn’t the first time a Carolina quarterback has been injured in a car accident to prompt a trade during a period when the team was struggling. Cam Newton suffered two back fractures in 2014 in an accident in which his truck rolled several times less than a half-mile from the stadium on a Tuesday.
The Panthers had a 4-8-1 record, but were still in the hunt for the NFC South title at the time of the accident. Reserve Derek Anderson started one game, a win against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Carolina ended up winning the division with a 7-8-1 record.
Carolina is entering a three-game stretch against the Broncos, New Orleans Saints (2-5) and New York Giants (2-5) before their bye week.
Outside linebacker Jadeveon Clowney, who missed the last two games with a shoulder injury, is among a group of key players expected to return this week to bolster a defense that ranks last in the NFL in points allowed.
He said Young deserves another chance and doesn’t consider the Panthers out of contention for the division title with Atlanta and Tampa Bay tied for the lead at 4-3.
“For the guys in the locker room,” Clowney said. “We just have to buckle down and believe it, accept it. It’s going to happen.”
