CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Bryce Young will make his second consecutive start for the Carolina Panthers on Sunday against the New Orleans Saints, head coach Dave Canales announced Wednesday.
Veteran Andy Dalton will serve as Young's backup. Canales said it's still unclear if Young will keep the starting job for the rest of the season. He said it depends on how Dalton recovers from a sprained thumb he suffered in a car wreck before last week's game at Denver.
"I wanted to get Andy in the best possible situation to make a decision going forward, also I'm excited for Bryce," Canales said.
Canales said he was about taking the decision away from Dalton so he doesn't try to play while injured.
"I want to make sure we're putting him back out there in the right state," Canales said. "And I'm excited for Bryce."
Young was mostly ineffective after an opening-drive touchdown against the Broncos, finishing 24 or 37 for 224 yards. He had two touchdowns and two interceptions in the game. It was Bryce's first multi-touchdown game since Green Bay last season. His 224 passing yards were a season-best for Young, who was benched after a 26-3 loss to the Chargers in Week 2. Denver head coach Sean Payton was blunt in his assessment of Carolina after the game.
"That’s not a good offense we played," Payton said. "It’s just the truth... We’re going to see a lot better teams."
Canales briefly touched on trading wide receiver Diontae Johnson to Baltimore, saying the team's front office felt it was the best decision for the organization. Canales said he wanted to keep a lot of the conversations private. The Panthers could make more trades ahead of next week's deadline as general manager Dan Morgan positions the team for the next phase of the rebuilding process.
