Former Carolina Panthers defensive end Mike Rucker is familiar with the franchise, spending all nine seasons of his career with the Panthers. The former Pro Bowler spent his playing days chasing down quarterbacks, but he recently opened up about the Panthers’ newest quarterback Bryce Young.
“I think it’s a great addition to the organization. And for the Carolinas,” Rucker said. “And the reason why I say that is, I’ve met him. I’ve met his parents. We’ve had many conversations. And you can just see how he respects the game. He’s humble. And he’s eager to learn, but he’s putting in the work.”
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft has already impressed coaches and players so far this offseason in Carolina. He’s shown off a combination of humbleness, confidence, and skills on the field during the Panthers’ OTAs and minicamps, which has already created some buzz and excitement around the team with the season two months away.
“Obviously we haven’t had the season yet. But you can just see with the time that he’s gotten with the team, you can ask anybody in the organization, his first priority is winning ballgames and being in the organization and leading this team,” Rucker said. “I think that when you look at what they have done and have surrounded him with some veterans, with some good people, he is then able to be the best version of himself.”
The Panthers acquired veterans like Adam Thielen, Hayden Hurst, and Miles Sanders this offseason in free agency to surround Young, and hopefully, they can help him carry over his winning ways from college to the professional level. Young boasted a 23-4 record in his two seasons as Alabama‘s starting quarterback, throwing for 8,200 yards and 79 touchdowns.
The biggest, and seemingly only, blemish on Young as a prospect was his size and durability, standing at just 5-foot-10, 204 pounds, but Rucker is not concerned about his size having an impact on his success with the Panthers.
“No, I’m not,” Rucker said. “I think that when guys come out of college, they have to find something. You can’t be this perfect guy. So really the only that they could say is his size. But ultimately when you think about the conference that he played in, the school that he went to — last time I checked, Alabama isn’t a small, running little team. There are some big guys on both sides of the ball. I think that he’s taken his licks before. And I think that he’ll be fine.”
The SEC is known as the conference in college football that most resembles the professional game, and there’s no doubt that Young thrived at that level. But if he can do the same at the pro level in his rookie season, then the Panthers’ offense could be a dangerous unit as early as the 2023 season.
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