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Carolina Panthers wide receiver Adam Thielen was impressed with the poise that quarterback Bryce Young showed during his tumultuous rookie season in 2023.
Thielen discussed the tough environment that Young dealt with during a recent appearance on Good Morning Football.
“I mean, I think everything was stacked against him last year, unfortunately,” Thielen said (h/t Kevin Patra of NFL.com). “And I’m not gonna get into detail as to why that was, but I’m just really excited for him to have a fresh start, an ability to have a good coaching staff that’s gonna put a good plan together to help him be successful, and also to put people around him to help him be successful.”
Young finished with a record of just 2-14 as a starter during his inaugural season, completing 59.8 percent of his passes for 2,877 yards. He also recorded 11 touchdowns compared to 10 interceptions.
His supporting cast didn’t give him much help, as Thielen was the only player on the Panthers’ roster to eclipse 600 receiving yards. Chuba Hubbard and Miles Sanders, Carolina’s top two running backs, both averaged fewer than four yards per carry.
Meanwhile, Young was sacked a whopping 62 times in his 16 starts which represented the second-highest mark of all quarterbacks in 2023. Former head coach Frank Reich was fired after the team got off to a 1-10 start to the season.
“His maturity level over the season was really cool to see,” Thielen said about Young. “And his ability to handle adversity. I don’t know how much adversity Bryce has had over his football career, and to handle the amount of adversity he did, to show up every week, week in, week out, put his head down and work, try to lead to the best of his ability was really impressive, and what makes me excited about Year 2 with him.”
The Panthers have made a concerted effort to improve the offense around Young, hiring former Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Dave Canales as their head coach on Jan. 25.
In free agency, Carolina signed starting interior offensive linemen Robert Hunt and Damien Lewis to multiyear deals. The front office also acquired wide receiver Diontae Johnson in a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
With several new offseason additions, it appears that Thielen is confident in his quarterback having a breakout sophomore campaign in 2024.
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