Entering Week 15, Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young played his way off the trade block following three strong games against the Kansas City Chiefs, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Philadelphia Eagles. The first-overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, Young struggled in a bad environment as a rookie but didn’t improve early in the 2024 season. Benched after two games, he fell out of favor with first-year head coach Dave Canales and seemed like a logical offseason trade candidate. However, those previous three games earned him an extended look and could have kept him around in 2025.
Unfortunately, he came back to Earth against the Dallas Cowboys. Playing as favorites for the first time in forever, Young finished his night completing 19 of his 28 passing attempts for 219 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions while adding two fumbles for good measure. A sizable portion of his production came on a busted coverage touchdown to undrafted free agent Jalen Coker, so he didn’t even play as well as his numbers suggest.
Coker 83 yards to the house!
📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/tNU6kz0H9u
— Carolina Panthers (@Panthers) December 15, 2024
Hopefully, this was just a one-week fluke and Young will return to his previous form down the stretch. However, if these performances continue, Canales and General Manager Dan Morgan will probably trade Bryce Young in the offseason and look for a new option in 2025. While they won’t receive a great return for the Alabama product, teams like the Baltimore Ravens and Los Angeles Chargers could go after him.
Panthers Could Open Bryce Young Trade Talks After Disastrous Cowboys Performance
Perhaps Bryce Young can earn a spot in a quarterback competition, but he’ll probably have to accept life as a backup, at least for a little while. If that happens, the Baltimore Ravens could be one of the best spots for Young’s long-term future. The first-overall pick may not have panned out with the Carolina Panthers, but he could salvage his career with some time on the bench. The recent success of players like Geno Smith, Sam Darnold, and Baker Mayfield shows what can happen when a player lands in an improved environment, and Young could be the next to join their ranks.
Bryce Young will never beat out Lamar Jackson for the Ravens starting job, but the team could still trade for him. Jackson is one of the best quarterbacks in football, but the two-time NFL MVP is not always the picture of health. While he’s stayed healthy in recent years, Jackson missed a combined 10 games in 2021 and 2022, and the Ravens could use a better backup than Josh Johnson. This is a win-win, as Young can develop behind Jackson while providing the team with some much-needed security at a crucial position.
Learning From Harbaugh
Justin Herbert is an elite passer, but the face of the Chargers franchise has battled his fair share of injuries over the past few seasons. Herbert missed the final four games of the 2023 season and has battled a series of injuries throughout the 2024 campaign. Easton Stick couldn’t get the job done last year, and while Taylor Heinicke is an adequate backup, he lacks any sort of upside.
Head coach Jim Harbaugh originally made a name for himself by saving Alex Smith’s career with the San Francisco 49ers. Widely considered to be a bust at the time, Harbaugh salvaged Smith’s career and brought him to the NFC Championship Game in 2011. Bryce Young won’t steal Herbert’s job, but perhaps a trade can bring out the best in him and he can learn to thrive in a new environment a few years down the road.
Main Photo: Bob Donnan – USA Today Sports
