Bryce Young is finally set to get back on the field.
After sitting out Carolina’s preseason opener, the Panthers quarterback will play Saturday against the Buffalo Bills, according to head coach Dave Canales. It will be Carolina’s first road game of the summer and Buffalo’s first game in its new Highmark Stadium, with Canales planning to give Young and the rest of the starters somewhere in the neighborhood of 10 to 20 offensive snaps.
The exact number depends on how the opening drives go. Canales made it clear the Panthers want enough live work to sharpen timing and rhythm, but not so much that they turn a preseason game into something bigger than it needs to be.
“We will play this week, for sure. We’ll take it week by week.
We’ll get them out there, probably play something similar to what Kenny [Pickett] and that group played in the Hall of Fame Game. So it’ll be somewhere between 10 and 20 plays, depending on how those drives pan out, so we can just get some good work in,” Canales said, via NBC Sports.
Young’s absence from the opener wasn’t about anything physical. Carolina held him out while Kenny Pickett and rookie Haynes King handled the offense in Canton against Arizona. That game turned into one of the more chaotic preseason openers around, ending with King’s 5-yard touchdown run on the final play in a 33-30 Panthers win over the Cardinals.
The result didn’t alter the plan for Young. Carolina used that first game to evaluate roster-bubble players, while keeping its starter on the sideline and fresh for a later appearance. Now the attention shifts to the group that will matter when the games start counting.
It’s the same preseason equation every coaching staff has to solve: starters need snaps to get in sync, but every snap also brings some risk. Carolina’s approach - a short outing, then a quick exit - shows the Panthers are trying to strike that balance rather than overextend their quarterback.
Young said last week he’s ready for the chance to play live again, even if it’s only in a limited role.
“I’m excited just to be able to go out there with the guys. Any time you get to play football live in a stadium, it’s a privilege.
Especially being able to go out there last week, you’re around it. Obviously I wasn’t playing, but you get that itch again,” Young said.
Saturday also comes with a little extra significance for Buffalo. The game will be the Bills’ first regular or preseason contest at their new 60,000-seat stadium in Orchard Park. It also puts Buffalo head coach Joe Brady back in front of the franchise he once worked for, after serving as Carolina’s offensive coordinator in 2020 and 2021.
For Young, though, this is mostly about the football in front of him. This season carries more weight than any since his rookie year after he helped lead Carolina to an NFC South title and a playoff berth in 2025.
That run earned him the team’s fifth-year option, and another steady step forward would strengthen his grip on the job. Another stumble would bring the old doubts back into the conversation.
The Bills game won’t settle everything. But for Carolina, getting Young back in live action is a meaningful next step.
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