LeBron James Has Message For Bryce Young After Benching

The Carolina Panthers will start Andy Dalton instead of Bryce Young at quarterback against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, coach Dave Canales announced Monday.

The 2021 Heisman Trophy winner at Alabama and the first overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, Young started 16 games as a rookie and the first two games of the 2024 season.

LeBron James is one of the players who reacted to Canales’ decision. The Los Angeles Lakers forward and NBA leading scorer sent a message to the young quarterback, which he shared on social media.

“Bryce Young, hang in there Young (prince emoji)!” James wrote. “I’m rooting for you and I know it’s not your fault! Keep working hard and you will succeed!”

The Panthers benched Young after losing to the New Orleans Saints 47-10 on September 8 and to the Los Angeles Chargers 26-3 on September 15. Young completed 31 of 56 passes for 245 yards with no touchdowns and three interceptions.

In the last 14 NFL seasons, only one quarterback with at least 50 passes has had a lower passing efficiency rating than Young (44.1) after two games in a season. Ryan Fitzpatrick had 39.9 after the Miami Dolphins’ first two games in 2019. He was replaced by Josh Rosen. But after three games, Fitzpatrick returned to the lineup and started the final 11 games of the season.

Dalton said he didn’t expect Young to be benched.

“It’s a tough situation,” Dalton said. “I’ve been on both sides of it. It’s tough for everybody, but I’m looking forward to it.”

In Young’s season, the Panthers went 2–15, with Dalton starting a 37–27 loss to the Seattle Seahawks on September 24, with Young out with an ankle injury. Carolina recorded a season-high 334 passing yards in that game.

Young completed 315 of 527 passes for 2,877 yards with 11 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. That came under two head coaches. The Panthers fired Frank Reich after 11 games, and special teams coordinator Chris Tabor held the reins for the remainder of the season. Canales came aboard in January after serving as the offensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

“Bryce and I are very close,” Dalton said. “It’s tough to be in this position, hearing that you’re not going to start and all the emotions that come with that. And so it’s tough to be here. I hope that our friendship and everything that we’ve built since he got here stays, and I know it will. I think he even said it in his press conference after the game, like, the tough times are when you show your true colors. For him, I think he’s going to come out and be the same person. But I feel for the whole situation. It’s not fun for anybody.”

Dalton said he was “very confident” Young would bounce back from the bench.

“He’s been well-trained,” Dalton said. “Who knows what’s going to happen? But I know he’s got the right character traits, what he believes in, and that’s going to carry him well beyond all of this now.”