Adam Thielen reveals the part of Bryce Young's game that has stood out the most

The Carolina Panthers have two fresh faces in town: veteran receiver Adam Thielen and rookie quarterback Bryce Young. With years of experience behind him, Thielen evaluated his new teammate.

“There was so much talk about him so there’s not a whole lot of surprise. For me, it’s probably just been his movement in the pocket. His ability to get the ball out on time, but do that in a way that not just like sitting in one stagnant spot,” Thielen said last week during Panthers minicamp.

Thielen’s words hold weight. The 6-foot-2 wide receiver holds several NFL records, including being the only player with eight-straight games over 100+ receiving yards and 74 receptions in the first half of a season.

After going undrafted, Thielen was signed by the Minnesota Vikings, where he played for nine years. During his tenure, Thielen amassed 534 catches for 6,682 yards and 55 touchdowns. Thielen signed a three-year, $25 million deal with $10 million in the first year with the Panthers in March.

From the way he speaks about Young, he doesn’t seem to be regretting his decision.

“Sometimes it can be easy in this time of the year, when you’re not getting hit, no pads on, nothing like that, to just sit there and no fear and just throw it around. But, you can tell [Young] practices like it’s a game. And, I’ve always been a firm believer that when you do that it make the games a lot easier, and that’s been really impressive,” Thielen said.

Young was the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, an accolade well-earned. The 6-foot quarterback’s the only player in Alabama history to throw for 3,000+ yards in two seasons. Additionally, Young finished second in program history for career passing yards (8,356) and passing touchdowns (80), earning the 2021 Heisman Trophy.

Young has an imposing project in front of him. The Panthers went 7-10 last season. Nonetheless, the team finished second in its division due to other struggling organizations. While most look at Young as the new face of the Panthers, the position isn’t automatically his.

Young will have to beat out Andy Dalton for the starting spot behind center. See who wins the quarterback battle when the Panthers begin their season on Sept. 10 against the Atlanta Falcons.