Bill Belichick Raises Good Point About Panthers Benching Bryce Young

The Panthers made the drastic move to bench Bryce Young after the first two games of the season, leading many in the NFL to question how teams handle high-end talent.

Carolina will start Andy Dalton in Week 3 after a Young-led offense scored 13 combined points through two weeks. It was an eye-catching move for head coach Dave Canales to bench the 2023 No. 1 overall pick so early in the season.

On this week’s “Inside the NFL,” former New England Patriots defensive end Chris Long was empathetic toward Young for his situation. The two-time Super Bowl champion understood what the pressure was to be a top-two pick in the draft and believed owner David Tepper might have played a part in the decision to bench Young. He cited how Sam Darnold thrived with the Minnesota Vikings through the first two weeks of the season after his two-year stint in Carolina.

That comment elicited a response from Bill Belichick.

“Well, we saw Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield in Carolina, and now they’re both having a good amount of success with another team; Mayfield had a great year last year at Tampa,” Belichick said on “Inside the NFL,” per NFL Media. “You kind of have to wonder about your own evaluation of your players. I think that’s one of the biggest things you have to do as a coach, as an organization. No. 1, make sure you evaluate your players correctly. You have them there every day. You’re out there on the field with them every day. You got to get those guys right. We’re all going to miss on guys in the draft or guys from other organizations. Sometimes the fit’s not quite right. But the guys you have every day, you’ve got to get those right.”

Fellow former Patriot Chad Ochocinco Johnson agreed with Long that the Panthers asked too much of Young and didn’t have the supporting cast like they did when Cam Newton was the signal-caller.

Young’s benching could serve as a cautionary tale for teams like the Patriots who have rookie quarterbacks who they hope can be their franchise savior. Young was left out to dry, but a change of scenery could benefit him like it did for Darnold and Mayfield.