The Carolina Panthers are sticking with Bryce Young.
Young will get the start again on Sunday in their game against the New Orleans Saints, head coach Dave Canales confirmed on Wednesday. Young regained the starting job last week after veteran Andy Dalton was sidelined with a sprained thumb in his right hand. Dalton will serve as Young’s backup on Sunday.
Dalton was involved in a car accident last week while driving with his wife, their three children and their dog. While “everyone was fine” from the crash, Dalton suffered a thumb sprain in his throwing hand.
Dalton was a full participant in practice on Wednesday, Canales said, but he noted it has only been a week since the incident and his thumb injury. Although he is making progress, the team is still cautious.
“It was really my job to take the decision out of Andy’s hands,” Canales said. “If you asked Andy, ‘Can you go?’ He would tell you yes. To me it’s like he’s a week removed from a thumb injury. I wanted to make sure we get it back there in the right condition and in the right context.
“And I’m glad that Bryce will have another opportunity to build on the things we’ve talked about, to continue to grow and gain that experience that we’ve talked about, which will be invaluable to to be on the field and call things and do them.”
Young, who the Panthers traded up to select with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft, was benched after a rough 0-2 start this season. Dalton stepped in and immediately led the team to victory, but they have since lost five in a row and enter Sunday’s game with a 1-7 record. Young went 24 of 37 for 224 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions in last week’s 28-14 loss to the Denver Broncos.
It is unclear whether Dalton will start again later this season. The Panthers will take on the New York Giants next week before their bye week in Germany, which would give Dalton additional time to recover if that is the direction the Panthers want to go. But if Young can bounce back from his poor start and lead the Panthers to a win or two — something they haven’t seen in over a month now — he could regain the starting job for good.
