Panthers Moving Closer To Bryce Young Extension

Young was eligible for an extension this past offseason, but Carolina was not yet ready to commit to the former Alabama star as their long-term franchise quarterback. But another step forward this year seems to have changed the team’s tune. The Panthers are leading the NFC South with a 3-4 record and the NFL’s ninth-ranked offense, due in large part to Young’s new career-highs of 274.4 yards per game and 7.1 yards per attempt.

The Panthers picked up Young’s fifth-year option earlier this year, ensuring he remains in Carolina in 2027 for an affordable $25.9MM. Now, he could be in line for a long-term stay with the team that drafted him.

“I caught wind yesterday that they’re pretty far down the road on getting a deal done to keep Bryce Young in Carolina,” Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio said on Wednesday. He notes that such an agreement would be somewhat surprising considering Young’s pedestrian passer rating and third-lowest completion percentage among qualified passers.

Young’s per-year average is expected come in over $50MM, Florio adds, a market-level deal for a quarterback with his resume. That still seems like a potential overpay given the questions about Young’s ceiling, but the Panthers are also considering the alternative: another long stretch in the NFL’s quarterback-less wilderness, the same situation that inspired them to trade three first-round picks to draft Young back in 2023.

The Panthers may wait to see if Young’s improvements hold for the rest of the year before finalizing an extension in the offseason. But taking Carolina to a second-straight divisional crown with top-10 passing volume could raise his price further.