Carolina Panthers head coach Frank Reich is doing his best to find the positives in his team's 0-4 start to the season. The play of rookie quarterback Bryce Young is one area that Reich sounds optimistic about.
“Bryce is progressing. He's getting better,” the coach said after the Panthers dropped a 21-13 game to the Minnesota Vikings at home, courtesy of ESPN's David Newton. Reich had several specific compliments for Young's performance.
“Accuracy was good…I thought he saw a lot of things well. Thought he moved in the pocket well.”
Despite being winless in his first three NFL starts (Young missed Week 3 because of an ankle injury), Young's stats have improved in each game he's played. Facing a Minnesota defense that Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers torched last week, Young broke the 200-yard passing mark for the first time.
In each start, Young's passing yardage has gone up, his completion percentage has improved, and in two games straight, he has not thrown an interception. He did take five sacks on Sunday after taking four in Week 2. As a quarterback of smaller-than-typical stature, that is a worrying trend for the Panthers.
Reich acknowledged that, like his performance as a play-caller, there are plays Young is going to want back. He called that “the nature of the position.”
He also didn't hide his frustration with the team at large, telling reporters “We all have to continue to get a lot better.”
Teams that start rookie QBs as they break in a new head coach can certainly expect some struggles. But if Young gets better each time he takes the field, the Panthers will at least have an important building block at the game's most important position. That's a worthy consolation prize.
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