Bryce Young Contract News, Panthers Make Decision on QB's 5th-Year Option After NFL Playoff Berth

Bryce Young's tenure with the Carolina Panthers will continue for at least two more years.

The team announced Tuesday that it is picking up the young quarterback's fifth-year option, keeping him under contract through the 2027 season.

"Man, Bryce has had a damn good year," team captain and defensive tackle Derrick Brown said. "So many people rag on him, and s--t, if it was easy, everybody would play quarterback in the league, but that ain't quite the case. So man, I'm just proud of him and his growth throughout the year, standing tall in front of the team, no matter if it was when we got beat in New England, coming to the locker room, we got something to say. I mean, we get it every single week."

It's a logical continuation of what has been an up-and-down experience for both Young and the Panthers.

Carolina made a huge splash ahead of the 2023 NFL draft, trading the Nos. 9 and No. 61 overall picks in 2023, a 2024 first-round selection (that would ultimately end up being No. 1 overall), a 2025 second-rounder and wideout D.J. Moore to the Chicago Bears for the top overall pick.

They used that pick to select Young, seemingly ushering in a new era of Panthers football. But that era initially looked like more of an error.

Young struggled immensely in his rookie season, throwing for 2,877 yards, 11 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in 16 games, taking a whopping 62 sacks while completing just 59.8 percent of his passes. Young's struggles were understandable, to an extent—he was saddled with a porous offensive line and a lack of playmakers.

There were immediate consequences for those issues. The Panthers fired head coach Frank Reich just 11 games into his tenure in Carolina after a 1-10 start. Very little improved from there, as the team finished an NFL-worst 2-15.

In the offseason, Dave Canales was hired as head coach and was tasked with rejuvenating Young. That effort was ditched after just two games, however, as Young started the season by throwing for 245 yards, no scores and three interceptions, taking six sacks and completing just 55.4 percent of his passes.

It was a worst-case scenario for the Panthers. Not only did they give up massive draft capital to acquire Young, but he was also regressing in his second season. The team—either in an effort to restore his confidence or in an effort to actually be competitive during the 2024 season and keep the locker room happy—benched Young for veteran Andy Dalton. The supposed future of the franchise was taking a seat after just 18 games on the job.

From the moment the Panthers made that decision, it seemed possible that Young was on borrowed time in Carolina, though he did regain the job later in the season.

And Young played well enough down the stretch that Canales gave him a public vote of confidence as the starter going forward.

Young took another step forward in 2025, setting career highs in yards (3,011), passing touchdowns (23) and completion percentage (63.6), though he also threw a career-worst 11 interceptions. More importantly, he led the Panthers to the playoffs and an NFC South title, albeit with an 8-9 record.

But it made it inevitable that the Panthers would continue to commit to him going forward. There is plenty of room for growth, but Young has continued to take strides in that regard, and the future appears to be bright in Carolina.