Steve Smith reveals what changed for Bryce Young during time on the bench

Steve Smith has an idea on what helped transform Bryce Young.

Dec 1, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young (9) before the game at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images / Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

Since returning from a shocking early-season benching, Bryce Young has looked like a different player. Young has gone from a bust to a potential future superstar in the span of a few weeks, and his time on the bench clearly helped. Carolina Panthers legend Steve Smith has his take on what changed for the second-year player.

Steve Smith reveals how Bryce Young bounced back

Since Week 9, Bryce Young has been graded out as the third-best quarterback in the NFL per PFF. He no longer looks like the worst first overall pick in NFL history. Former Panther Steve Smith said, "You're getting a guy that gets the opportunity to see the game from a different perspective."

The ex-WR added that seeing the game from under center vs. on the bench provided a clarity for Young. It gave him the opportunity to really be coached and to deal with the adversity that he had seen through the first year and change of his NFL career. "Bryce has shown you that he can deal with adversity," Smith said. "He's used to it. He has a good pedigree."

Smith went on to say that he was a proponent of Young sitting from the get-go, saying that the team around him wasn't great and that he never had to fight for his spot on the team. He said it wasn't fair that they put Young out there to "fix all the elements" of a poor roster in his first season. Now, Young is more capable of overcoming those deficiencies.

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