Sheena Quick isn’t buying the Bryce Young slander.
After Sports Illustrated slotted the Carolina Panthers quarterback 30th among NFL starting QBs, the Panthers reporter pushed back hard on the ranking and made it clear she’s had enough of the criticism aimed at Young.
The numbers from last season help explain why. Young threw for 3,011 yards with 23 touchdowns and 11 interceptions, while adding 216 rushing yards and two rushing scores. He also helped lead Carolina to the playoffs for the first time since the 2017 season.
As the first overall pick in the 2023 draft, Young has already put together a sizable body of work in a Panthers uniform. He enters next season with 8,291 passing yards, 49 passing touchdowns, 30 interceptions, 718 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns.
There’s also the contract side of the conversation. Young is due to make $12.1 million next season in the fourth year of his rookie deal, and his fifth-year option is set at a guaranteed $25.9 million.
Inside the building, the belief in Young is strong. Panthers offensive coordinator Brad Idzik made it clear he sees a quarterback who thrives when the pressure spikes and the game is on the line.
"Just an ultimate competitor and distributor, and he's ice cold in the big moment," Idzik said about Young, via Panthers.com. "The competitor, for him, looks different.
But every single person in that team meeting room knows, this guy, he's going to give you everything he's got. He's going to extend every play to the very last second.
Go back to Miami last year, down 17, fourth down, and he's buying one extra tick with three guys barreling down on him just to be able to get that ball off to (Tetaroia McMillan) and keep us alive and eventually win the game.
"And then the clutch moments for him, where he doesn't bat an eye, that's just something he's always had. It goes back to Alabama, goes back to Mater Dei; he's a winner, and we've enjoyed watching all those fourth-quarter last-minute drives, giving us a chance in games."
Carolina opens the 2026 season against the Chicago Bears, setting up a matchup that will put Young opposite fellow No. 1 pick Caleb Williams.
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