Bryce Young didn’t play in the first two preseason games, and that worried some.
The first overall pick in last year’s NFL draft didn’t have a great rookie season with the Carolina Panthers, even though he wasn’t put in a great situation. This season, with a new coach and improved teammates, was supposed to be different. But Young didn’t play the first two games. There weren’t any live performances from Young and the starters in coach Dave Canales’ scheme.
Canales played Young in the preseason finale and it turns out the timing was perfect.
If Young and the Panthers needed a confidence boost heading into the regular season, they got it in a 31-26 win over the Buffalo Bills. Young completed 6 of 8 passes for 70 yards and a touchdown. He sat down after that drive. He worked a bit and leaves the preseason with a positive result.
Beyond the stats, Young looked comfortable. He hit rookie tight end Ja’Tavion Sanders on a nice power pass over the middle. He made an impressive play to avoid a sack and then took a hit, which the Panthers coaches probably didn’t appreciate, but it might be good to get rid of that first hit of the season. The Panthers went for it on a fourth-and-3, and Young bought time, scrambling to his left, then made a tough pass on the move to Diontae Johnson for the first down. On the next play, he moved to his right and hit Adam Thielen for another completion.
Young finished the drive with an 8-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Matthews, which may have been his easiest pass of the drive. The Bills had a poor coverage and left Matthews in scoring position.
A preseason workout against backups doesn’t tell us much about Young and his ability to bounce back from a bad rookie season. But for fans who wanted to see Young play some in the preseason, they had to be happy with the results.
Two passes shouldn’t be enough to sway opinions, but the Steelers offense needed something positive this preseason and finally got it.
Russell Wilson completed both passes on his only series and Cordarrelle Patterson ran for a 31-yard touchdown on Wilson’s only drive, which has been remarkable for the Steelers this preseason. Heading into Saturday, Wilson and Justin Fields had played a combined 13 preseason possessions and the Steelers had scored just three points in those drives. Two completions likely secured Wilson’s starting spot for Week 1. One of the passes was a nice 31-yard pass to George Pickens. Wilson was well protected, which has also been an issue this preseason for Pittsburgh. The Steelers lost 24-17 to the Detroit Lions, but finding positives on offense was the biggest takeaway.
The Steelers have had some injuries on their offensive line and could be without running back Jaylen Warren early in the season due to a hamstring injury. The quarterback’s play has not been very inspiring. Pittsburgh’s defense…