After a tumultuous 1-10 start to the 2023 NFL season, Frank Reich was relieved of his duties.
The now former head coach of the Carolina Panthers has now been fired in consecutive seasons, and this time around it had a lot to do with the development of his young quarterback (or lack thereof).
The Panthers traded up with the Chicago Bears — sacrificing D.J. Moore in the process — in order to select Bryce Young with the No. 1 overall pick. In doing so, the Panthers selected the Heisman Trophy Award-winning quarterback over his counterpart, C.J. Stroud, which now looks to be a mistake, as the Houston Texas first-rounder looks to be the Offensive Rookie of the Year, and quite possibly league MVP.
While selecting the wrong quarterback is a discussion for a different day, the Panthers’ failure to build up Young is why Reich’s time in the NFL is likely over. Young, who has been sacked 40 times already this season, has thrown for 1,877 yards with nine touchdowns against eight interceptions. It’s almost impossible to evaluate the young quarterback in his current state.
With just 10 NFL starts under his belt, Young will already be playing for his second head coach in the league — interim Chris Tabor. With that, Young spoke to reporters on Wednesday and addressed his first coach in the NFL being given the ax before the completion of his rookie season.
“We all take ownership, especially offensively,” Young said, via NBC Sports’ Pro Football Talk. “It’s all of us. We all look in the mirror. There’s all things we could do better. We all wanted to do better. It’s a collective unit, there’s no finger-pointing from players, coaches, nothing. We all could have been better. We have to improve.”
[PFT]
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.