Eagles' Jalen Hurts makes big claim about Panthers' Bryce Young

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield previously said that he was "proud of" how Carolina Panthers second-year signal-caller Bryce Young has bounced back from being benched earlier in the season. 

Following Carolina's 22-16 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday that dropped the Panthers to 3-10, Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts touched upon what he saw from Young at Lincoln Financial Field.

"He's a great player,'' Hurts said about Young, per David Newton of ESPN. "A great player.''

Young largely looked like a young player who didn't belong in an NFL lineup over Carolina's opening two games of the season before first-year head coach Dave Canales benched the top pick of the 2023 draft. While Young has since lost four of his last six starts, he completed 59.6% of 203 passes for 1,273 yards with seven touchdowns, four interceptions and eight sacks taken over those games. He also rushed for 111 yards and a score on 22 attempts across the six contests. 

Against Philadelphia, Young connected on 19-of-34 passes for 191 yards with a touchdown and a pick. He was one costly drop away from completing what could've become a late game-winning drive against one of the NFL's best overall teams. 

"I just love how he's been able to persevere through some of the things that he's been faced with," Hurts added. "And [I] like seeing him comfortable out there and playing the way he's playing. So that's encouraging for him. I always support him and wish him nothing but the best in that."

It was revealed that Panthers president of football operations/general manager Dan Morgan told Young shortly after the quarterback's demotion that Morgan wanted Young "to be great more than you even know." For a piece published Monday morning, ESPN's Bill Barnwell mentioned that "Young's QBR since returning to the lineup ranks 15th in the league." 

None of that means Carolina won't at least bring in some competition for Young during the upcoming offseason. For now, though, it sounds like talk about the Panthers trading Young before the 2025 draft begins can be put to bed. 

Carolina next hosts the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. 5-7 Dallas welcomes the 4-8 Cincinnati Bengals to AT&T Stadium on Monday night.