Bryce Young Trade Gets Worse for Carolina Panthers

Remember the blockbuster trade the Carolina Panthers made with the Chicago Bears? The one that sent D.J. Moore from Carolina to Chicago, along with multiple draft picks for the first overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft?

Yeah, it continues to get worse. 

The Panthers took Bryce Young with the first pick in the 2023 draft. Meanwhile, the Bears used the picks they got on Darnell Wright, Tory Taylor, Tyrique Stevenson, Caleb Williams and Luther Burden. 

The Bears traded Moore to the New England Patriots for a second-round pick in this year's draft. Moore finished his Chicago career with 244 catches for 3,012 yards and 20 TD catches. 

Chicago won the NFC North last season and beat the Green Bay Packers in the wild-card round. The franchise has a bright future with Williams leading the way. 

While the Panthers did make the playoffs last season, they lost to the Los Angeles Rams in the wild-card round and the jury is still out on Young, who probably won't get an extension from Carolina this offseason. 

Young has 8,291 passing yards, 49 passing touchdowns, 30 interceptions, 718 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns in a Carolina uniform. He put up 3,011 passing yards, 23 passing touchdowns, 11 interceptions, 216 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns last season. 

The Panthers did pick up the fifth-year option on Young's contract, but unless the QB wins a Super Bowl with Carolina, the Panthers will always be criticized for giving up too much for Young, who is only 14-30-0 in the NFL. 

Young and Panthers head coach Dave Canales have come a long way from 2024, when Young was benched for Andy Dalton. The two are now connected at the hip and in charge of leading the Panthers to the promised land one day.

"There was an emotional strain. I could feel that," Canales said of his relationship with Young. "I know because it was a hard decision. I know Bryce could feel that because of how this impacted him directly, and everybody else can feel it. It's like, ‘Oh, this seems like a big deal.’ But it's like, ‘OK, this is the decision that was made. But how do we get better today?’ And so there's, like, a daily focus on improvement. Bryce is wired that way.

"He never wavered on that part, so that when his opportunity came back, he was that much better."

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