Panthers' Bryce Young enjoying 'luxury' of familiar NFL offseason originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.Bryce Young continues to grow more comfortable in his environment.The Carolina Panthers quarterback, entering his fourth NFL season, started studying a familiar playbook Monday when voluntary offseason workouts began at Bank of America Stadium.The 2023 No. 1 overall draft pick is working with coach Dave Canales and offensive coordinator/new play-caller Brad Idzik for a third season and his bond with returning wide receivers Tetairoa McMillan and Jalen Coker continues to strengthen.Panthers' Bryce Young psyched for Year 4Young experienced a gauntlet of emotions during his first three seasons with the Panthers.
His rookie season was simply a dysfunctional mess. He was sacked 62 times during a 2-15 campaign. Young opened his second season hesitantly and ineffectively.
Canales, then a rookie coach, benched the 2021 Heisman Trophy winner until the season's second half, when he returned as a more confident playmaker.Last season, Young guided the Panthers (8-9) to their first NFC South championship since 2015. With the fifth year of his rookie contract guaranteed by general manager Dan Morgan, Young sounded relaxed during Tuesday's teleconference. "I want to make sure I'm able to take the communication, leadership and processing to a higher level," he said.
"Everyone (is) doing a great job of taking ownership (of) the playbook ... to take it to the next level."Young said he was eager to resume his work with McMillan and Coker. McMillan, the 2025 rookie of the year, and Coker, who agreed to an exclusive rights free agent tender last Monday, are expected to serve as WR1 and WR2 this season."It's huge," said Young, sounding comfortable. "That's a credit to them and the hard work that they put in, the way that they've produced and it just give us that stability."It's a huge luxury for me, for us as a team."