QB Bryce Young benched for Andy Dalton after bleak start to Carolina Panthers’ season
Dave Canales has seen enough.
The first-year head coach of the Carolina Panthers, after an 0-2 start that saw his team be outscored by a league-worst 73-13 margin, has elected to bench starting quarterback Bryce Young ahead of his team’s Week 3 contest at Las Vegas.
Veteran quarterback Andy Dalton will start Sunday against the Raiders in the second-year quarterback’s stead.
“My No. 1 responsibility is to help the Panthers win, and so this move I believe puts us in the best chance to do that this week,” Canales said Monday.
The news comes after a difficult start to Young’s second season with the Panthers. That tough start was highlighted by Week 2’s struggles, which included Young throwing a career-worst 84 yards and one interception for a quarterback rating of 57.2, up from his career-low 32.8 rating in Week 1.
Canales told reporters he thought of the change Sunday evening after he watched film and had conversations with a variety of people — including assistant coaches, general manager Dan Morgan and executive vice president of football operations Brandt Tilis. When asked if he consulted team owner David Tepper on the decision, Canales said: “I want to keep that private.”
“A lot of factors go into it for this decision,” Canales said. “And ultimately it kind of just lands on my shoulders to be able to make the best decision for our group to give us our best chance to win this week. And we focus on the weeks, we focus on the challenge, and we feel like Andy gives us our best chance to do that.”
Canales said that he doesn’t want to “get into specifics” of the decision or the private conversations he held with his players and his staff. Still, he said those conversations were “rough,” and he confirmed that he told the quarterbacks Monday morning before informing the whole team thereafter. He said he didn’t discuss the topic with veteran players before making the decision.
“I hate to sound like a broken record,” Canales said. “I just owe it to all the guys, the coaches, the staff, the players — everybody involved — to be really critical about what we put on film. About what I’m seeing. And to make sure that I’m constantly making the best decision for the team. Every week.
“It happens to be the quarterback position. So it’s loaded in that way. But it’s every position. It’s all the guys. And I was able to stand in front of the team and challenge all the guys — that we all have to step up the passion for what we’re doing, to play with the play style we’re looking for.”
Recapping Bryce Young’s difficult start
Young was selected No. 1 overall by the Panthers in 2023 — which was made possible by a series of roster moves ahead of the NFL Draft, including a blockbuster trade with the Chicago Bears that lifted substantial draft capital and wide receiver DJ Moore away from Carolina.
The Panthers’ front office was hopeful that Young’s arrival at Carolina could spark hope for the fan base and solve the quarterback dilemma that plagued the losing seasons of former head coach Matt Rhule. Dreams spawned quickly. Tepper, on draft night, told a crowd of loyal Panthers fans that drafting Young would lead to “Super Bowls” — sending the fan base into a predictable frenzy.
Young’s arrival didn’t pay immediate dividends, though. As a rookie he went 2-14 — missing one game due to an ankle injury — and notched nearly as many interceptions (10) as passing touchdowns (11). He saw the coach who was brought in to guide him (Frank Reich) fired midseason; the general manager who drafted him (Scott Fitterer) was fired, too, after the team’s final game in 2023.
Canales was then hired in January 2024, in large part, to assist Young, what with his history of rejuvenating quarterbacks in Seattle as an offensive assistant coach and Tampa Bay as offensive coordinator. In his introductory news conference, Canales said that as he prepared to interview for the job in Carolina, he “just got more and more fired up about the opportunity to have this amazing talent” in Young. He added that Young was “that face of the franchise type of player.”
Even Sunday, immediately after the game when asked about the likelihood that Young will be benched, the 43-year-old coach reiterated: “Bryce is our quarterback.”
The benching doesn’t necessarily render those four words — “Bryce is our quarterback” — a falsehood. That said, when asked if the plan was to bring Young back into the fold after some time learning from the side, Canales sidestepped the question: “I don’t want to get into timelines. I just know Andy gives us our best chance to win right now.”
Andy Dalton is excited for the opportunity to start
Dalton said Monday that he’s “really excited for this opportunity.” When he signed in Carolina in March of 2023, he thought his starting days were over — that his role on the team would be to mentor the Panthers’ future face of the franchise and do so from the sideline.
“I’m excited about what’s ahead,” Dalton told reporters Monday. “It’s a tough situation. I’ve been on both sides of it. And it’s hard on everybody. But for me, I’m looking forward to it.”
Dalton was drafted in 2011 by the Cincinnati Bengals. He spent nine years there and started every game he played. He landed in Dallas in 2020, starting nine of 11 games, and has since been with three other teams. His lone start in Carolina was for the Panthers’ most explosive game last season — a game where he threw 34 completions on 58 attempts for 361 yards and a two touchdowns in a 37-27 loss to the Seattle Seahawks.
This story was originally published September 16, 2024 at 2:13 PM with the headline "QB Bryce Young benched for Andy Dalton after bleak start to Carolina Panthers’ season."
