Report: Bryce Young, Carolina Panthers agree to four-year $37.96 million contract

The No. 1 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft has officially inked, with quarterback Bryce Young‘s contract with the Carolina Panthers now officially under agreement.

The former Alabama star will be on a four-year, fully guaranteed $37.96 million contract that includes a nearly $24.6 million signing bonus Young will collect up front, according to the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. NFL teams have the option to pick up a fifth-year on first-round picks.

Young became the No. 1 overall pick after a career at Alabama that included a Heisman Trophy in 2021.

The talented dual-threat quarterback amassed 8,200 passing yards with 79 touchdowns and just 12 interceptions over the past two years. He also added 185 yards and seven touchdowns rushing.

He helped lead Alabama to a College Football Playoffs appearance as a sophomore in 2021 before narrowly missing out on a return trip in 2022.

And even before Bryce Young’s contract was agreed to, he had begun to impress teammates in Carolina. Teammate Miles Sanders had a unique way of describing Young.

“He’s cocky in a humble way.” Sanders said on the Mac and Bone podcast. “The humblest way. He knows who he is. I think we’re in good hands.”

Young will be counted on to turn around a franchise that actually performed decently well a year ago after the firing of Matt Rhule, who went on to take the Nebraska head coaching job this offseason.

His ability to process the game quickly and understand everything he’s looking at is one of his key qualities.

“I don’t know what Nick Saban is doing over there with those Alabama guys, but (he’s) creating some very sharp guys,” Sanders said on the Rich Eisen Show. “I’m looking at him and he’s very sharp with everything. He’s there early, he leaves late.

“When we’re there on the field and I’m talking to (Young), I tell him to just take it slow with the offense. I very well see that during plays and going against the defense. His decision-making is smart, he doesn’t force anything and his pocket presence is what really stands out to me. And the height doesn’t matter at all. … I like him, and we have a bright future ahead of us.”

With the Bryce Young contact now inked, the former Alabama star can begin tracking down professional accolades. He was one of the most decorated players in college the past few years.

Young was the AP and Sporting News College Football Player of the Year in 2021, he was the SEC Offensive Player of the Year in 2021, a consensus All-American in 2021 and a first-team All-SEC selection. He won the Maxwell, Davey O’Brien and Manning Awards in 2021, as well. In 2022, Young was named a second-team All-SEC selection.