Nick Saban Defends Bryce Young, Torches Panthers While Discussing QB's Benching

The former Alabama coach reacted to Carolina's decision at quarterback.

Saban joined ESPN's "College GameDay" show in 2024. / Ken Ruinard / staff / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Bryce Young's college coach still believes in his future as an NFL quarterback.

Former Alabama coach Nick Saban unleashed an emphatic response to Young, the No. 1 pick of the 2023 NFL draft, getting benched earlier this week by the Panthers heading into Week 3.

"Quarterback is a really hard position to play if the people around you don't play well," Saban said Friday on The Pat McAfee Show. "... Do they have the type of players around Bryce Young to even give him a chance to be successful? That's one of the bad things about being the first guy picked in a draft. You may go to a team that doesn't have all the pieces that you need."

" ... [The Panthers] have to build this thing from the ground up. I hate to see Bryce get benched. But I also don't see a lot of opportunity for him to be successful based on the skill players they have around him, the offensive line they around him."

"And I think he's the type of player that can operate well when he has good players around him."

"I hate to see Bryce Young get benched but I also don't see a lot of opportunity for him to be successful based on the skill players & offensive line around him..

He's the type of player that can operate really well when he has good players around him"

Nick Saban #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/uzZrbLuvIO

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) September 20, 2024

The Panthers already weren't a very deep team when they decided to trade up from the No. 9 pick in the 2023 draft to the No. 1 pick on March 10, 2023. They sent a significant package to the Chicago Bears to move up, trading away star receiver D.J. Moore as well as two first-round picks and two second-round picks.

Of course, Carolina doesn't draft Young without making that trade. But it certainly has set the franchise back in its attempt to surround the quarterback with talent.

Young's rookie season did not go as planned, as Carolina finished with a league-worst 2–15 record and had to watch as the Bears used their 2024 first-round pick to select highly-touted quarterback Caleb Williams. Young threw for 2,877 yards, 11 touchdowns and 10 interceptions as a rookie—adding up to a 73.7 passer rating.

Young and the Panthers got off to an even worse start in 2024, losing 47–10 to the New Orleans Saints in Week 1 and 26–3 to the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 2. Young threw for just 245 yards and three interceptions in those two games combined, leading to coach Dave Canales deciding to send the second-year quarterback to the bench.

Now, Young will watch from the sidelines as Andy Dalton takes over the starting role. But Saban believes Young holding a clipboard for the next few weeks could benefit him in the long term.

"I think he's going to be positive about trying to learn and grow from this situation," Saban said. "He's always been a guy that sort of improved from his failings. Hopefully, this will be an opportunity for him to do it again."

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