NFL insider reports Bryce Young shocked and 'pissed' about Panthers benching him

ESPN reporter Jeremy Fowler has a source that says Bryce Young is P-O'd by the team's decision to bench him after just two games.

Tim Weaver | Sep 19, 2024

Sep 15, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young (9) with offensive tackle Ikem Ekwonu (79) before the game at Bank of America Stadium. / Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

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Carolina Panthers

Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young thrived at every other level of the game, and you don't win a Heisman on accident. However, Young has hit a hard ceiling thus far in his career in the NFL. Young played so poorly in his first two starts this season that the organization didn't have much choice but to bench him, even if it came as a shock so early in the year.

When he speaks with the media it's clear that Young is a perfect gentleman, kind, humble, thoughtful and always knowing the right thing to say. It brings to mind former NBA legend Tim Duncan, who was equally soft-spoken and so famously even-keeled that it was literally a meme. On the court Duncan was a savage competitor, though. He wouldn't have won four rings if that wasn't the case. Former Panthers All-Pro linebacker Luke Kuechly had the same dynamic going for him - a splendid human being by all accounts - but something more like a very-determined animal when it came to his business on the field.

If Young is going to wind up thriving in the NFL, he's going to have to embrace one of the two wolves that are inside him and every other athlete that gets to this level and get a little bit angry. It sounds like that process may finally be underway. According to a report by ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, Young is not only shocked by the team's decision to bench him, he's upset, even "pissed."

ESPN on Bryce Young's reaction to getting benched

"The Panthers sent shockwaves through the league with the benching of Bryce Young. Here's what I know about the situation after asking around. First, Young was not only shocked by the decision but also upset. 'He's pissed,' a source said, citing the vision of the new Panthers offense being ripped apart after two games."

If Young truly is pissed off then it's about time. The question is if he can use that anger to his advantage and funnel that energy into sharpening his skillset and breaking out of the funk that's plagued him in live games since he was drafted. Based on what he's done thus far, Young has literally nowhere to go but up. His QBR is somehow worse than Jimmy Clausen's in 2010, which currently holds the record for worst-ever by a starter for a full season.

Duncan and Kuechly and a dozen others like them have proven that you can compete at the highest level and win multiple championships being a nice guy. Young can do the same, but he'll have to start that journey by making some major changes to how he approaches the game immediately.