Panthers minicamp: Bryce Young discusses practice mistakes; defender continues to impress
Bryce Young had an up-and-down afternoon on Wednesday as the Panthers concluded their annual mandatory minicamp.
Young offered up a mixed bag of passing plays during team drills as the Carolina defense continued to make noise throughout the two-day minicamp. Young made the most of his chemistry with veteran wideout Adam Thielen, especially in red-zone team drills, but he also had a handful of misfires.
Luckily for Young and the Panthers, the offseason program is typically when coaches want their players to make mistakes so that they can learn from them.
“Mistakes are going to happen, but that doesn’t mean that we have to be satisfied with it,” Young said after practice. “We understand that it’s a tough game. On offense, we’re going up against a great defense every day and vice versa. We try to challenge ourselves — we understand the competition that happens — so we understand that mistakes are going to be made, but we don’t get complacent in that. When those (mistakes) happen, we try to address them, we try to get better at them. Just because we know it’s going to happen, doesn’t mean we can’t have urgency about it.”
After nearly getting picked off during the 11-on-11 period, Young responded with an excellent downfield heave to a fellow rookie, wide receiver Jonathan Mingo, to cap his first phase of team drills.
Young’s ability to bounce back from errors is something his teammates and coaches have noticed during the offseason program.
“Very even-keeled, very calm,” cornerback Donte Jackson said about Young. “Smart guy — smart football player. You can tell he’s played a lot of football. Over his young career, you can tell he’s been in a lot of high-intensity moments, a lot of big games, and he’s made a lot of big plays.”
During red-zone work, Young hit Thielen for back-to-back touchdowns. He then had a ball batted at the line by defensive tackle Shy Tuttle. The failed play didn’t deter Young at all, as he then responded with a scoring strike to wideout Laviska Shenault in a crowded end zone. Young also had an impressive open-field strike to tight end Hayden Hurst, in his first 11-on-11 work of the offseason in front of the media, toward the sideline.
Although Young hasn’t been dominant during the offseason program, he has shown poise, pocket awareness and accuracy, especially during team drills. Those traits, along with the ability to move to the next play without a second thought, should encourage the staff and roster as the groups move into their six-week summer break.
“Mistakes are going to come,” Young said. “It definitely hasn’t been a perfect OTAs for anyone — any unit, any individual — but we understand that’s going to be the case. Again, at the same time, it’s on us to hold ourselves accountable. The coaches do a great job of holding us accountable.”
Panthers’ defense continues to shine
Pass rusher Marquis Haynes set the tone for the practice during the first 11-on-11 rep of the workout. Coming off the edge, Haynes immediately got into the backfield and swarmed Young. After dominating the offensive line — with minimal contact — on Tuesday, Haynes continued to show off his skills on Wednesday.
“I think he’s been great,” Young said about Haynes. “There’s been a lot of great competition here. So, you see him in the backfield and know it’s because it’s good-on-good. It’s elite guys going up against each other. . . . We love the competition here but, obviously, it’s tough when you have to go against him every day in practice. But on Sundays, it’s great knowing that you have a guy like that out there. So, I’m super excited for him and the entire team.”
Haynes has a quick first step off the line. He was whistled for an offsides penalty later in practice, which will be something worth monitoring with the speed rusher during training camp.
Haynes appears to be transitioning to the 3-4 front well during the offseason program. While practices without pads will only indicate so much, the staff is likely encouraged by the early returns from the longtime pass rusher.
Another holdover talent who has had a good week is safety Sam Franklin. After breaking up a pass on Tuesday, Franklin secured an interception in the end zone during 11-on-11 red-zone drills. Backup quarterback Andy Dalton forced a poor throw into the end zone, and Franklin was able to snatch the ball out of the air for a turnover.
Linebacker Shaq Thompson nearly forced a pick of his own earlier in practice. The linebacker broke up a pass from Young in coverage, and rookie safety Jammie Robinson nearly hauled in the ball for the splash play. Thompson and fellow veteran linebacker Frankie Luvu have looked very comfortable in coverage within the new system, especially during mandatory minicamp.
Cornerback Keith Taylor also got in on the pass-breakup action, as he made a nice play on the ball against wideout Terrace Marshall during 7-on-7 reps. On Tuesday, Marshall won that battle during the same formatted drill, so it was nice to see Taylor respond the next day against a similar look.
On the injury front
Following practice, Panthers head coach Frank Reich said that he plans to have a meeting with trainers on Thursday to discuss the team’s host of injuries coming out of the offseason program. Reich also said that he expects right guard Austin Corbett (ACL) to be the only player to start the summer on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list.
The Panthers can put players on the PUP list ahead of training camp to preserve their availability for the upcoming season. If a player remains on the PUP list beyond the final cut deadline, he will miss (at least) the first four games of the season and not count against the 53-man roster. The Panthers can take the player off the PUP list at any time prior to the cutdown deadline, as long as he receives an active PUP designation.
The Panthers worked without safety Vonn Bell (hamstring), cornerback Jaycee Horn (ankle) and wideout Damiere Byrd (undisclosed) again on Wednesday.
Defensive end Brian Burns (ankle), cornerback Donte Jackson (Achilles), offensive tackles B.J. Wilson (Achilles) and Larnel Coleman (foot), guard Chandler Zavala (pectoral), defensive tackle Jalen Redmond (undisclosed), wideouts Derek Wright (wrist) and Josh Vann (undisclosed), Corbett and Byrd all were seen at practice but didn’t participate. Defensive tackle John Penisini, who returned to practice on Tuesday, wasn’t on the field on Wednesday.
Wide receiver Shi Smith (undisclosed) also watched practice, while defensive tackle Raequan Williams was not seen during the workout, despite taking part in drills on Tuesday.
Quick hits
▪ Tight end Jordan Matthews and cornerbacks Greg Mabin and Thakarius Keyes continued their respective tryouts on Wednesday. The Panthers have an open spot on the 90-man roster heading into summer break. Reich said that he and general manager Scott Fitterer discussed some potential roster movement after practice.
▪ Reich praised running back Raheem Blackshear when asked about under-the-radar standouts during the offseason program. Blackshear was signed off the Buffalo Bills’ practice squad early last season during his rookie year. Blackshear appears to be in line for more work under the new staff during his second year in Carolina.
▪ Cornerback Donte Jackson, who has been a spectator throughout the offseason program, singled out fellow defensive back Stantley Thomas-Oliver as a standout during the OTAs and minicamp. Jackson noted that Thomas-Oliver has been moved around the secondary this offseason. Thomas-Oliver spent most of last season on injured reserve. He is known more for his special teams contributions than his defensive prowess.
▪ Veteran wideout DJ Chark made an impressive touchdown grab during 11-on-11 red-zone work. Despite undergoing ankle surgery this offseason, Chark has looked quick during the past two weeks. Chark has also shown chemistry with both Young and Dalton this summer.
▪ Running back Chuba Hubbard has looked explosive during the offseason program. While non-contact drills are hard to gauge for running backs, Hubbard is running hard, and he looks noticeably bigger from a physique standpoint.
This story was originally published June 14, 2023 at 5:31 PM.
