After benching, Panthers QB Bryce Young stays positive, vows to 'be better'

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Bryce Young on Thursday admitted he was surprised when Carolina Panthers coach Dave Canales benched him in favor of veteran Andy Dalton for Sunday's game against the Las Vegas Raiders.

"As a competitor, obviously not how you dream of what's going to happen,'' Young said in his first interview since the decision was made on Monday. "It wasn't something I necessarily was expecting. Obviously, it was not something that was great to hear.

"It's on me to put them in that situation.''

Young, 2-16 as the starter since the Panthers (0-2) made him the top pick of the 2023 draft, repeatedly took responsibility for the decision to bench him the day after Canales said Young would start against the Raiders.

He never admitted he was mad, although sources close to the situation said he initially was.

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Young also avoided speculation on whether he has a future at Carolina, although Canales said on Wednesday he still believed the former Alabama star could be a franchise quarterback in the NFL.

"I'm a day-by-day kind of person,'' Young said. "I've talked about that consistently. Big picture stuff, that's out of my hands. That's organizational stuff, for the people upstairs. I'm super grateful to be part of the team, with our organization. I want to help in every way I can.''

A source close to Young said the quarterback is "open to anything'' as it pertains to staying with the Panthers through the end of his rookie contract or being traded to another team.

Canales said on Wednesday that trading Young is "not something that we're considering.''

Young has spent the past two days running the scout team. Defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero said the 5-foot-10, 204-pound Young has done a great job of playing the role of Raiders quarterback Gardner Minshew.

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"When you have a guy that can move around and make plays on the move, and sit in the pocket and make throws . . . he did a lot of good things in practice against us, and certainly he's making us better,'' Evero said.

Young said his goal is to help the team however the staff sees fit.

Asked if he had enough time to prove himself after a rookie season when head coach Frank Reich was fired after a 1-10 start and only two games into his second season under a first-year head coach, Young said that was for others to decide.

But ultimately he took responsibility for statistics that were historically bad, including a 9.1 Total QBR this season that is among the worst in league history for consecutive games.

"I had a lot of plays last year and in the first two games,'' Young said. "For the most part, every snap hit my hands and I didn't do enough. I take accountability for that. There's a long list of things that I wish was better and I'll continue to work and grow and improve and be better at.

"Everyone has circumstances. If I went out there and played better and won games . . . and at the end of the day that falls on me and that didn't happen . . . we wouldn't be having this conversation.''