How to Define Success for Bryce Young in 2024?

Matt Alquiza | Jul 1, 2024

Jan 7, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young (9) scrambles in the fourth quarter at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports / Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Success: the accomplishment of an aim or purpose. For a Carolina Panthers franchise that openly talked about a winning record and competing in playoff games in 2023, success was not found. Frankly, success has been hard to come by on Mint Street this decade. 

Dave Canales, Dan Morgan, and their hired staffs have the difficult task on their hands of bringing success on the gridiron back to the Carolinas. The most important cog in the Panthers' return to glory is the right arm of Bryce Young. 

For quarterbacks, success is defined in a number of ways. Passing yards, passer rating, QBR, ANY/A, Super Bowl, rings, placement Stephen A. Smith’s top five list, the list goes on. But for the Panthers’ sophomore signal-caller, I believe success in 2024 can not be quantified by a single statistic or number. You’ll know it when you see it. 

In his rookie season, Bryce Young looked overwhelmed. His mitigating circumstances did him no favors. Poor schematic choices, a leaky offensive line, and a butter-fingered receiver room made life difficult for the number one overall pick. Bryce Young’s biggest defenders point to those mitigating circumstances as evidence for his presumptive progression in 2024, but to be honest, Young often failed to look the part of a top-notch NFL quarterback.  

In the rare instance that Young's supporting cast rose to the occasion, the quarterback had times where he faltered. Overthrowing open receivers was a common occurrence for the Carolina quarterback, a mistake he made too many times as a rookie.

On the other side of the coin, Young truly did elevate the poor cast around him. His tape is littered with high-end throws, legitimate scrambling ability, and dimes that would turn even Patrick Mahomes' head.

The problem for Young was consistency. One snap he would look like a Gen Z-Steve Young. On another, his lack of elite measurables and arm strength would flash and he would fail to make the high-end impact he was drafted to make.

Success for Bryce Young in 2024 is simple. He needs to show improved consistency, and establish control and ownership of Dave Canales’ offense. Young truly needs to look like an NFL quarterback on a snap in, snap out basis. In the lens of 2024 specifically, no number of passing yards or touchdowns will deem Young’s season as a success. If he shows improvement on 2023 and looks comfortable elevating an improved supporting cast, that will be enough to deem his sophomore campaign successful. 

The flashes of top-notch quarterbacking in Young's 2023 tape are hard to ignore. If those become the norm, not the exception, 2024 will answer some questions about Young.

Our Schuyler Callihan did a masterful job detailing the conversation no one wants to have in Carolina, but young can quell that conversation before it even starts by actualizing his potential as a quarterback in 2024 and beyond.