While I didn't watch the whole game, in the parts I saw, to my untrained eye Young looked better than Fields did Sunday
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https://www.charlotteobserver.com/sport ... 84494.htmlQuote:
Panthers QB report card: How Bryce Young fared in his home debut vs. Saints
Bryce Young’s prime-time debut in Charlotte didn’t go much better than his NFL premiere in Atlanta the week before. The Panthers’ rookie quarterback struggled to find a rhythm throughout Monday’s 20-17 loss to the New Orleans Saints at Bank of America Stadium. While he had the occasional positive play — including a breathtaking 26-yard scramble in the fourth quarter — Young and the offense left a lot to be desired as they failed to consistently put up points for a second consecutive game.
Partnered with an inconsistent offensive line and wideouts who failed to get regular separation, Young struggled to move the ball through the air, much like in the Week 1 loss to the Falcons. Now 0-2 in both the NFL and NFC South division standings, the Panthers will need to climb out a major hole to start the season. And to do that, Young and the offense need to find the missing link in the passing game.
Young isn’t completely at fault for the offensive frustrations, but he isn’t doing much to alleviate them, either. While Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson — the fourth overall pick — flashes dynamic athleticism, and Houston Texans quarterback CJ Stroud — the second overall pick — completes 63.7% of his passes and avoids interceptions, Young has done little — it’s very early to be fair — to show he is the most capable of the trio. Here is Young’s report card from Monday’s loss:
YOUNG’S STATS VS. NEW ORLEANS Young completed 22 of 33 passes (66.7%) for 153 yards and a touchdown. He also ran for 34 yards on two carries and had a lost fumble in the second quarter. He led four scoring drives on the night. The rookie quarterback finished the game with a 87.1 passer rating.
YOUNG’S SPREADING THE BALL GRADE Young targeted and completed passes to six different receivers on the night. That’s a pretty low number for a team that likes to spread the ball around. Wideout Adam Thielen was Young’s top target on the night with seven throws being sent his way. Thielen caught seven passes for 54 yards and a touchdown. Thielen also caught a two-point conversion pass from Young. Young next most targeted playmaker was running back Chuba Hubbard, who caught all five of his targets for 34 yards. Grade: C-
YOUNG’S ACCURACY/DECISION-MAKING GRADE The rookie completed 66.7% of his passes on the night. While that number looks swell, the digits need context. Young was routinely pressured and receivers struggled to get open, which was also the case in Week 1. The biggest reason is because the wideouts aren’t getting separation from coverage. When a wideout was able to occasionally get open against the Saints, Young was up-and-down in the accuracy department. He overthrew Thielen and rookie Jonathan Mingo on consecutive passing plays during the first series of the second half. He also had an excellent third down pass dropped by Mingo on the same drive.
He later had a wide-open slant play end with the ball skipping like a stone on the turf roughly 9 yards in front of him.
In the fourth quarter, Young finally started to use his running backs and tight end Hayden Hurst to his advantage. He made a handful of short throws to Hurst, Miles Sanders and Hubbard. That trio helped Young anchor a third field-goal drive. He later led a touchdown-scoring drive with mostly quick-hitters, outside of a 22-yard catch by Mingo. Grade: C
YOUNG’S MOBILITY GRADE While Young only ran twice, he did a really nice job of evading pressure in the pocket.
As receivers were struggling to get open regularly, and when protection predictably broke down after several seconds of blocking, Young was able to make the first man miss to keep plays alive and avoid sacks. He was hit seven times and sacked four times, but those tallies easily could have been much worse if it wasn’t for Young’s pocket presence. He can move around and keep his balance, while also keeping his eyes downfield. He did fumble on a strip-sack late in the second quarter, but that was a tough turnover to elude after protection broke down almost immediately.
Young’s best offering of mobility came in the fourth quarter, when the rookie took off on a 26-yard up-the-middle scramble on third-and-11. He was able to sell a slight juke and shake safety Marcus Maye. Young blazed past the defensive back for roughly 15 more yards. The fans at Bank of America Stadium erupted as Young did his best to slide to the ground. It was more of a plop down then a slide, which Young has admitted he has never learned to do. The explosive run by the rookie led to a third field goal. Grade: B-
YOUNG’S TURNOVER GRADE Young caught a lucky break on the second series of the game. On third-and-6, Young threw a contested pass to Thielen, who was covered by cornerback Alontae Taylor. The cornerback was able to snag the ball after a light collision, but Thielen reached back to force Taylor to bobble the ball before falling out of bounds. The would-be interception was nullified because Taylor lacked control as he went out of play, which helped Young avoid a third interception on the season.
However, in the second quarter, Young gave up his third turnover in the first six quarters of his career. With excellent field position following an interception by the defense, Young and the offense were placed within field-goal range. But, on third-and-6 from the New Orleans 18-yard line, left tackle Ikem Ekwonu allowed Saints pass rusher Carl Granderson to get behind his protection and force a strip-sack on Young. The forced fumble was recovered by New Orleans at its own 41-yard line. Luckily for the Panthers, the turnover didn’t lead to points. Ekwonu deserves equal or more blame for the turnover, but it’ll go on Young’s stat line. Young had avoided sacks most of the night, but that one was hard to elude.
Young nearly coughed up another turnover during the first series of the second half, but he was bailed out by a late penalty flag. Young was stripped on a sack by Saints defender Bryan Bresee — formerly of Clemson — but New Orleans was flagged for defensive holding to negate the play. The Panthers kept the ball and punted a few plays later. Grade: C
YOUNG’S OVERALL GRADE This offense isn’t dynamic, and that’s not completely Young’s fault. The wideouts have failed to separate with regularity and the offensive line can only block so long. Young wasn’t the reason the Panthers lost on Monday, but he doesn’t look like a solution through two games, either. Young is a rookie. He will look like a rookie a lot this season, especially when he has a limited supporting cast. But every now and then he makes a play that offers a glimmer of his Heisman Trophy-winning season at Alabama.
This game was another letdown for the offense, and another middling performance from Young. It’s been an uninspiring two weeks, but Young has shown solid decision-making skills and the ability to evade pressure in the pocket. Those are two important qualities for a rookie. OVERALL GRADE: C
This story was originally published September 18, 2023, 11:02 PM.
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