Panthers QB Bryce Young feels 'fine' after physical NFL debut

Rookie quarterback Bryce Young‘s debut as the starter of the Carolina Panthers wasn’t a fairy tale outing but few preseason debuts are. Throwing for a gain of 21 yards on four passes, Young played three series in the Panthers’ 27-0 loss to the Jets.

Taking multiple hits, on three of his seven dropbacks, the first overall draft pick assured reporters after the game that he feels “fine.”

“I feel fine,” Young said, via USA Today. “Physically, I’m blessed . . . I feel fine now. And, again, for me—whatever people may assume or may think is going on or whatever the expectations are, I don’t control that. Those are what they are. For me, that’s not something I’ve put stock into. It’s not something that’s on my mind.”

There’s clearly a lot of work left for the Panthers’ offense before things start running smoothly. Young took as much responsibility for the mistakes as he put on his offensive line.

“It was a lack of execution starting with myself,” Young said, via Steve Reed. “I definitely could have done better and us as a unit all have to take accountability. … We have to own this and get better.”

As for taking big hits, Young is no stranger to it. Playing three seasons in the SEC saw the 2021 Heisman Trophy winner taking monster blows every Saturday. The only difference now is he isn’t celebrating a big win after the physical beating.

“Yeah, that’s part of the game,” Young said. “Football is a physical sport. It’s part of the job description. You’re gonna get hit—and, again, that’s the game we play. It’s part of the job and you know that’s coming. That’s not something I think of. Can’t let that affect your decision-making or what you’re going through.”

Panthers’ Ickey Ekwonu: ‘He shouldn’t be getting hit at all’

Bryce Young wasn’t pointing fingers after his meager debut but that didn’t stop his teammates from shouldering blame. Offensive lineman Ickey Ekwonu expressed his frustration with the offensive line’s performance in the game and how much they allowed Young to get hit.

“Just disappointed. Not what we’re looking for at all,” Ekwonu said. “He shouldn’t be getting hit at all. That’s on us. We just weren’t good enough today. We’ve got to just attack it. A lot of things on tape we’ve got to fix. So that’s the goal going into next week.”

In three series, Bryce Young was 4-of-6 for 21 yards. In his final snap of the game, Young went down for a sack by Quinton Jefferson. Matt Corral, Young’s replacement, suffered a similar fate as the Carolina offensive line couldn’t handle New York’s pass rush. In the end, Corral took four sacks.

The Panthers’ offensive line has a chance at redemption in a few short days. On Friday night, they’ll take on the other team from New York, this time on the road.

On3’s Dan Morrison contributed to this report.