Panthers camp takeaways: Bryce Young’s leadership isn’t fazed by mistakes, turnovers
Bryce Young jogged to the practice field at Wofford College on Thursday with a huge smile as a chorus of Panthers fans cheered his Day 2 arrival. After a strong first day of practice, the Carolina faithful showed up in Spartanburg, S.C. to see a repeat performance.
And while Young — who went 6 of 9 during 11-on-11 work — had a solid second performance, he did make a pair of mistakes that he eluded on Day 1.
Errors don’t faze Bryce Young’s leadership
Panthers head coach Frank Reich said Wednesday that the team won’t overreact to a single mistake or highlight play. On Thursday, Young and the offense had a pair of passing miscues.
After completing his first four passes of 11-on-11 drills, Young overthrew wide receiver Adam Thielen — his favorite weapon of Day 1 — by several feet after the wideout blew past big nickel corner Jeremy Chinn in coverage. He followed up that error with an interception, as cornerback CJ Henderson took advantage of a miscommunication between Young and a receiver on a stick route. Reich admitted the miscommunication impacted the timing throw that went straight into the hands of Henderson.
Outside of those two minor miscues, Young was sharp in working the short to intermediate levels of the field. Young does a nice job, as he did during his career at Alabama, keeping his eyes up when his first read isn’t there. He is also willing to give his receivers time to break open if their initial breaks don’t shake the coverage assignment.
Young rewarded wideout Terrace Marshall early in practice as he sped past defenders on a shallow crosser for a nice catch. He utilized Laviska Shenault’s catch-and-run ability with his ability to sync the duo’s speed on timing throws. Young also made a nice throw up the seam to rookie wideout Jonathan Mingo during 11-on-11 work.
But the sequence that probably stood out the most for Young on Thursday was one that showed off his ability to lead and be a good teammate. During 7-on-7 work, Young fired a laser over the middle to tight end Ian Thomas. The ball was out quick and a bit behind the tight end, and Thomas dropped the ball — wide open — over the middle. On the very next play, Young went back to Thomas for another seam throw and connected with the veteran tight end for a big gain. Whether it was planned or not, Young “fixed” the connection after a mistake, which was a nice way of following up a miscue with a successful rep.
The Panthers’ staff and players typically bring up Young’s humility and respectful nature, but his ability to lead in a subtle way has become a trademark as well from the outside looking in.
RECAP: Takeaways from training camp practice No. 1
The ‘silent killer’ strikes again
Henderson wasn’t the only turnover creator on Thursday.
Inside linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill, who picked off Andy Dalton’s first throw of team drills on Wednesday, struck again on Thursday. This time, Grugier-Hill intercepted Dalton’s final throw of Thursday’s practice.
Dalton was scrambling during an 11-on-11 rep late in practice. The backup quarterback saw tight end Hayden Hurst streaking across the middle. In an effort to get the ball out quickly, Dalton threw off his back foot, creating an inaccurate toss that hung in the air. Grugier-Hill jumped in front of Hurst and picked off the pass, creating his second interception in as many days.
Following practice, fellow inside linebacker Shaq Thompson called Grugier-Hill a “silent killer.” Thompson also said that while the Panthers initially brought in Grugier-Hill to play on special teams, the squad is going to have a hard time keeping the veteran linebacker off the field on defense if he continues to perform this well practice.
Jonathan Mingo shows off his skills
It’s really hard to gain context during 7-on-7 drills in training camp. There’s so much space on the field without trench players that it essentially becomes a glorified flag football practice. But every now and then, there’s a play that is hard to ignore.
On Thursday, second-round pick Mingo made a special play in the passing game. Young slightly overthrew his fellow rookie teammate during 7-on-7 work, and the 6-foot-2, 220-pound receiver dove forward to catch the ball. Running a “go” route, Mingo stretched out his arms, sprung forward and corralled the ball with his fingers tips as he fell to the ground. The fans who were front and center behind a practice gate gave an audible reaction before turning to a respectful golf-style clap for the playmaker.
Following practice, Reich said that Mingo has been consistent and done a good job of shouldering the burden of a lot of information and responsibilities all at once. Reich said the team has thrown a lot at Mingo (both literally and metaphorically, it seems), and the rookie has been able to handle the workload.
A good moment for a Matt Rhule era holdover
During Day 1, nose tackle Marquan McCall was the Matt Rhule era holdover who stood out. On Day 2, that award went to last year’s fourth-round pick, linebacker Brandon Smith.
Smith forced a fumble during 11-on-11 drills, scooped up the ball and returned it to the end zone for a would-be touchdown. During the rep, Dalton fired a shot to tight end Stephen Sullivan, who caught the ball cleanly. Smith then came over and punched out the ball for a fumble, which Smith then secured and returned.
Smith is a player with tremendous athletic upside. However, his production as a rookie was few and far between. With a new staff in place, Smith is legitimately in “prove it” mode on the roster bubble. If Smith can continue to make standout plays, he might carve out a role on defense instead of wallowing on special teams. With Grugier-Hill standing out early, Smith needs to catch up to accomplish that feat.
Shuffling the deck on the offensive line
With Austin Corbett (ACL) and fourth-round pick Chandler Zavala (hamstring) on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list, the Panthers are moving things around on the offensive line during the early days of practice.
During 11-on-11 work, the Panthers were moving guards and tackles in and out the lineup so routinely that it was hard to map out combinations. While reporters aren’t allowed to detail specifics on strategic positional observations, it’s safe to say that the majority of the offensive line depth chart is being cross-trained at multiple positions. And that’s a smart move by offensive coach James Campen.
Really, the only players locked into their roles at the moment — upon camp viewing during the first two days — are left tackle Ikem Ekwonu, center Bradley Bozeman and right tackle Taylor Moton. But even Moton took some snaps off in favor of veteran Cam Erving at times. Left guard Brady Christensen was spelled by other lineman during the workout as well, but that could be unrelated to strategy.
An under-the-radar lineman who received some looks on Thursday is undrafted rookie Nash Jensen, who was the likely beneficiary of Zavala’s absence. Second-year lineman Cade Mays continues to be the fill-in foundation at right guard.
Marquez Stevenson’s waiving explained
The Panthers waived wideout/returner Marquez Stevenson with a failed physical designation shortly after practice on Wednesday. The move came roughly 24 hours after general manager Scott Fitterer said all the returning veterans passed their physicals on Tuesday.
Reich explained after practice on Thursday that Stevenson complained about pain in his foot during a conditioning drill, and following follow-up testing, the wideout failed to meet the standard set by the medical staff. The results ultimately led to him being cut.
The team replaced Stevenson with former Chicago Bears and Arizona Cardinals wideout Javon Wims. The Georgia alum made his debut on Thursday in Stevenson’s former No. 13 jersey. Wims took part in individual drills as he learns the playbook.
During his career, Wims — a 2018 seventh-round pick — has appeared in 34 games and produced 28 catches for 266 yards and two touchdowns. After failing to appear in a game in 2021, Wims played in one game for Arizona last season.
Quick hits
▪ Undrafted linebacker Ace Eley was the last player to leave the field on Thursday. He spent roughly 40 minutes working on his hands with a JUGS machine on the fair side of the field after the workout. The Georgia Tech alum is one of the more physically imposing athletes on the roster at a chiseled 6-foot-3 and 244 pounds.
▪ Wideout Laviska Shenault continues to be used in creative ways during practice. And while it’s forbidden to report specifics on strategic aspects of camp, it’s safe to say Reich and offensive coordinator Thomas Brown are having a lot of fun moving Shenault around the formation. Reich said he didn’t want to put a position label on Shenault just yet.
▪ Wideout Damiere Byrd, a notable returner, has looked good on offense during the first two days of drills. He’s competing for a role on the wideout depth chart, and to this point, he’s looked fast and fluid with the ball in his hands.
▪ Circling back to Terrace Marshall, this writer found it interesting that he didn’t have a standout play on Day 1 after a strong showing during the offseason program. On Thursday, Marshall looked fast throughout practice. Ideally, Marshall will be used in multiple spots at the position, as his straight line speed is advantageous to an offense that is predicated on spacing and yards after the catch.
▪ Running back Miles Sanders has looked quick and agile as a runner, but his real highlight of camp came in the passing game on Day 2. During 7-on-7 drills, Dalton targeted Sanders with a ball that was high and a bit off the mark. Sanders, though, contorted his body and stretched out his arms to make a fairly impressive falling grab. If Sanders can stick out in the passing game this season, Young will have a prime outlet for when going gets rough with coverage down the field.
▪ Dalton was nearly picked off during 7-on-7 work. He fired a ball off the mark to wideout Shi Smith and safety Sam Franklin almost came up with the grab. Franklin was visibly disappointed he didn’t catch the gift of a throw.
▪ DJ Chark’s uncanny ability to track deep balls has been impressive throughout the two days of workouts. Coming off of ankle surgery, Chark looks to have regained his speed — routinely blazing past defensive backs in individual and team drills — and his ability to know where the ball is in the air has helped his quarterbacks look good.
▪ Much like Wednesday’s workout, the Panthers’ coaching staff kept the drills moving efficiently throughout the morning. The nearly two-hour long practices featured little wasted movement between drills, and team reps moved quickly from whistle to huddle to whistle, even as personnel groupings were routinely reworked.
More training camp reading:
▪ ‘Yes, he’s QB1’: Panthers top pick Bryce Young shines in first training camp session
▪ ‘I need to be here’: Brian Burns on why he’s at Panthers training camp during contract talks
▪ Exclusive: Hall of Fame GM Bill Polian on pros, cons of rookie Panthers QB Bryce Young
▪ Panthers training camp takeaways: Jaycee Horn ‘ready to go’, Bryce Young praises Andy Dalton
▪ Bryce Young needs a secret weapon for Panthers. A fellow rookie could fill that role
This story was originally published July 27, 2023 at 2:57 PM.
