Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales is benching 2023 first overall pick Bryce Young in favor of veteran quarterback Andy Dalton for the team’s Week 3 matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders.
After a rough rookie season, Young has had a brutal start to the 2024 campaign — as have the rest of the Panthers, who are 0-2 in Canales’ first two contests at the helm. Still, the 2021 Heisman Trophy winner’s move to the bench is somewhat surprising, given that he’s only 18 games into his career and hasn’t had much help. (The team has surrendered an NFL-high 73 points this year.)
With the Raiders on deck in Week 3, however, given Dalton’s 4-0 career mark against Oakland/Las Vegas, he’ll likely give Carolina a better chance at getting in the win column than his teammate.
As Young heads to the bench, some have started comparing the Alabama product to one of, if not the biggest bust in NFL Draft history in former quarterback JaMarcus Russell.
Russell was selected first overall by the then-Oakland Raiders during the 2007 draft and lasted just three seasons in the league.
