The Carolina Panthers lost a very winnable game against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, and fans have questions.
In light of this, The Charlotte Observer brought back its reader mailbag to help make sense of it all. Check out the entries below. There may only be three questions addressed, but trust us: They cover a lot of ground.
The Bryce Young dilemma — 2025 version
Via BlueSky, Adam asks: How much of what we’ve seen from Bryce is his ankle, and how much “is what it is”?
The short answer: For now, this is what this is. The Panthers’ passing offense lacks individual explosiveness and collective execution. And Bryce Young is at the center of all of that. All of this was true before he twisted his ankle. Point, blank, period.
Let’s dig a little deeper, though, because the topic of Young and all he encompasses is not only the most common question in this week’s mailbag — it’s also the most consequential question facing the long-term success of the Panthers.
In October 2024, my colleague Mike Kaye wrote a story headlined “The Bryce Young Dilemma.” You probably remember it. Young was going into his fifth week after being benched Week 3. The Panthers were 1-6. Kaye discussed if there was trade value for Young; there wasn’t. He explored whether Young could start again; that wasn’t the plan at the time — not before an Andy Dalton sprained thumb intervened, of course. And finally, Kaye wondered if Young would be at the helm of the Panthers in 2025 if he didn’t return to the lineup in 2024; it wasn’t likely.
I point to this moment in 2024 for two reasons.
Reason No. 1: There’s a new Bryce Young dilemma. The 2025 version, if you will. It stems from the fact that, yes, Young is indeed the best quarterback on the Panthers and has shown flashes of clutch brilliance in his third year — but he’s also been ... inconsistent. Really inconsistent. Quarter-by-quarter more so than game-by-game. And even his best hasn’t produced gaudy numbers: He hasn’t thrown a touchdown pass in two games. His longest completion of the season was a 40-yard catch-and-run from Tetairoa McMillan against Arizona. He’s only thrown for over 200 yards once; that same Arizona game. His average passer rating on the season: 79.7. That’s 37th among all quarterbacks who have notched a start in the NFL this year as of Monday afternoon, per ESPN stats.
Depending on which stats you peruse, or who you talk to, you can deduce that Young has only lifted his team to a win once: the win over the Cowboys. And even then running back Rico Dowdle was a madman, and kicker Ryan Fitzgerald earned Special Teams Player of the Week honors.
So he hasn’t been great. Before and after his ankle injury. And that’s true in wins and losses. The only time he’s truly dazzled, and left fans bewildered, has been in game-winning scenarios, his ineffable trait. (Of course, that fell short Sunday against the Saints, creating this conversation here and now.)
Reason No. 2 of why I’m harkening back to October 2024: So much can change. Quickly. My goodness. The idea of trading Young, or of releasing him prior to this year, seems so strange now, particularly with how strong he finished 2024 and how integral he is to this Panthers’ team. Running back Chuba Hubbard reminded everyone the NFL is a “week to week league” after the New Orleans loss. And it has drawn some ire. But it’s nonetheless true.
The team getting to eight or nine wins — with the league’s second-toughest remaining schedule, no less — should dampen this week’s rage. And Young playing well down the stretch could erase Week 10 from memory. The idea that I’ve seen tossed around a lot — Should the Panthers forget about picking up Young’s fifth-year option? — is fair, but still premature. If Young can help the Panthers ascend to playoff contention, this won’t be a question. It still might not be, given how much of a risk it is to go on the quarterback market. The Panthers, of all franchises, know how difficult of a game that can be.
So in sum, we can all agree this passing offense hasn’t been good enough. And that Young, himself, hasn’t been good enough. But he’s the best option the Panthers have now and likely will have until the end of 2026. Then — and really only then — can we talk in good faith about the rest of Young’s future in Carolina.
Kick return woes
Via email, Richard asks: I think we had one kickoff returned Sunday to about the 40. But generally, most of the Panthers’ KO returns seems to be around the 30. Is that the league average? It just doesn’t seem like Trevor or Chuba are running as hard as they can. Do we have faster returners on the roster?
I promise to practice brevity in the final two questions! Let’s get to the Panthers’ kick return game.
The best stat I could find regarding a league average starting field position was one after Week 4 published by NFL Operations. For the 2025 season, the average starting field position after a kick return was the 28.7-yard line (best since 2024, prior to that was 2003); and the average starting field position after all kickoffs was the 29.5-yard line.
Compare that to the starting field position for the Panthers after kickoffs on Sunday: 33-yard line, 28-yard line, 38-yard line, 32-yard line. That all averages out to 32.75 — above the league average from Week 4 of this season. So statistically, all seems well.
As for the second part of the question? Yes, the Panthers have faster players than Chuba Hubbard and Trevor Etienne, who field the kickoffs. They even have faster players with returning experience. (*Cough cough* Jimmy Horn Jr.) But running backs, with this new kickoff format — one that values the ability to read blocks and break tackles over sheer speed — are the answer. Special teams coordinator Tracy Smith thinks so, and he’s not alone in that regard across the league.
The Jimmy Horn Jr. question
Via X, Ray asks: Why do they use Jimmy Horn Jr. only on jet sweeps? Why not (crossing routes) or deep patterns?
Horn only notched 11 offensive snaps on Sunday. That’s 21% of the team’s total offensive plays. He was never targeted. In fact, he only touched the ball once — on an ill-fated jet sweep that resulted in a fumble and a critical Panthers turnover.
The answer to Ray’s question, thus, is this: The coaching staff thinks there are better options for such routes. Tetairoa McMillan gets an adequate amount of targets — and deservedly so — and then outside of him, there aren’t many other passes to go round. The Panthers said they’d try to get Jalen Coker “going” against the Saints; he ended with four targets, three catches and 21 yards. Xavier Legette, the team’s first-round pick from 2024, was targeted once all game. Once!
The Panthers have a lot of issues with their passing game. And yes, Horn could one day be a part of the solution. (The Panthers think so too. He’s clearly won the backup slot receiver spot over Hunter Renfrow; Renfow has been a healthy scratch for weeks.) But for now, Horn’s ability to affect the run game with his speed — keeping defenses honest with his gadget-play package — is all the Panthers offense will use him for. Bigger fish are currently in the Carolina fryer.