"Let Bryce Young develop" - Micah Parsons sounds off on doubters questioning Panthers QB's 1-8 start
When Bryce Young was selected first overall by the Carolina Panthers late in April this year, expectations were high. Analysts said he was the man who would resurrect the franchise and help it return to championship glory.
But instead, the season has been a forgettable one for the 22-year-old. The Panthers are sitting at a league-worst 1-8, with their only win coming against the Houston Texans of second-overall pick CJ Stroud. Former Heisman winner and college champion, Young, is doing his best to the tune of 1,560 passing yards and eight touchdowns against seven interceptions.
This has led to frustration and impatience among fans. However, Dallas Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons has urged everyone to go easy on Young. Speaking on his podcast The Edge, Parsons said:
“I’ve seen a lot of conversation with people bashing Young because he’s 1-8. Do they regret not taking C.J. Stroud? Absolutely not. Let Bryce Young develop... There’s not a lot in Carolina right now. Their offensive line, running game, receivers haven’t really been the best. So I don’t think we should just throw away Bryce just yet."
Parsons also implored the Carolina front office to bolster the roster around Young, saying:
“I think we should let him get a couple years — give him that same grace as we did everybody else. Even guys like Trevor Lawrence who struggled their first year, look at what he’s doing."
“You’ve got to build a team that supports him and around him. Give him time, let him breakout. I think Young will have his breakout year. It’s just not this year.”
Journalist believes Bryce Young was Houston Texans' original first choice
The Bryce Young-CJ Stroud comparison has gone the latter's way, but under different circumstances, things might have been different.
On Monday's episode of The NFL Report, veteran writer John McClain made a bold presumption about the two rookie quarterbacks, saying that the Houston Texans wanted Young. He said:
“I think—and they’ll never admit this—if they had the No. 1 pick, they [the Texans] would’ve taken Bryce Young, even though there were a lot of people out there who had Stroud rated over Bryce Young."
"And they didn’t hesitate to take him second overall. They never paid any attention to the S2 Cognition Test, they don’t subscribe to it. They only went by what they saw, and (new head coach) DeMeco [Ryans] played a big role in it.”
Missing out on Young has seemingly worked out very well for the Texans, with Stroud leading them to a 5-4 record.