Can Bryce Young, Panthers’ run defense issues be solved before facing the Cardinals?
By Alex Zietlow and
Mike Kaye
The Carolina Panthers had a disappointing 2025 debut, one in which several familiar issues reared their heads.
Those issues:
Operational ones — as simple as getting play calls in quickly.
Quarterbacking ones — Bryce Young not looking like the Bryce Young who powered this team to a solid conclusion to 2024.
Roster ones — why aren’t more young guys playing on defense?
And that’s just to name a few.
Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young, left, and guard Robert Hunt, right, embrace following the team’s 26-10 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, September 7, 2025, at Everbank Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida. JEFF SINER jsiner@charlotteobserver.com
The rest of the concerns are brought up and dissected in painstaking detail by Observer reporters Mike Kaye and Alex Zietlow in the latest podcast episode of Processing Blue. The pair also preview the Week 2 contest against the Arizona Cardinals.
Listen to the latest episode at the embed in this story, or download it on Spotify, Apple Music or wherever you get your pocasts. You can also check out the show on YouTube.
Mike Kaye writes about the Carolina Panthers for The Charlotte Observer. He also co-hosts “Processing Blue: A Panthers Podcast” for The Observer. Kaye’s work in columns/analysis and sports feature writing has been honored by the North Carolina Press Association (NCPA). His reporting has also received recognition from the Associated Press Sports Editors (APSE).Kaye previously covered the entire NFL for Pro Football Network, the Philadelphia Eagles for NJ Advance Media and the Jacksonville Jaguars for First Coast News. Support my work with a digital subscription
Alex Zietlow writes about the Carolina Panthers and the ways in which sports intersect with life for The Charlotte Observer, where he has been a reporter since August 2022. Zietlow’s work has been honored by the Pro Football Writers Association, the N.C. and S.C. Press Associations, as well as the Associated Press Sports Editors (APSE) group. He’s earned six APSE Top 10 distinctions for his coverage on a variety of topics, from billion-dollar stadium renovations to the small moments of triumph that helped a Panthers kicker defy the steepest odds in sports. Zietlow previously wrote for The Herald in Rock Hill (S.C.) from 2019-22.Support my work with a digital subscription
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