Aug 16, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young (9) looks to the sidelines for a play against the Houston Texans in the first quarter at NRG Stadium. Thomas Shea-Imagn Images

What Bryce Young said about the Panthers' brutal showing against the Texans

Originally posted on Carolina Panthers on SI
By Tim Weaver | Last updated Aug 17, 2025 12:06 PM ET

Sometimes the best thing to do after a bad game is to completely forget about it and move forward. The Carolina Panthers certainly put in one of those "burn the tape" performances on Saturday afternoon against the Houston Texans.

Outside of a few random flashes here and there, Carolina had almost nothing at all to celebrate in the preseason loss. Their starting offense managed to post a grand total of three yards in two drives, their backup quarterback got injured, their third-stringer bombed, their defense offered precious little resistance and their special teams unit is still looking shaky in several departments.

Add it all up and that's not a great recipe for success. Starting quarterback Bryce Young admitted that they didn't get the job done after the game, according to Kassidy Hill at the team website.

Bryce Young on Panthers-Texans

"Obviously, you want it to go well early, get it done fast, and didn't get that done today," admitted quarterback Bryce Youngafter the 20-3 loss against the Texans in the second preseason game.

Nevertheless, Young insisted that he still has confidence in Panthers head coach Dave Canales and the vision of Carolina's front office.

Bryce Young on Dave Canales

"I trust the coaching staff above all else... Like I'm a competitor, you know, I think if you ask everyone here, you want to play every play, that's just how we're wired as as individuals, as a team, but ultimately, you know, I trust in Coach, he has a plan."

It's nice to have a starting quarterback who says all the right things. However, at this point you could forgive Carolina fans for preferring a QB who regularly makes an ass of himself with the media so long as he makes the Pro Bowl at the end of the year.

Young may very well get there - but at the moment it's difficult to see a path to Orlando for the Panthers' young signal-caller. It's no fault of his own, though.

Outside of one solid drive early on against Cleveland the Panthers have looked utterly pathetic in all three phases through most of two preseason games. Their run game hasn't been able to get going, Taylor Moton is getting folded up like a hot towel, their special teams unit it a mess, and on defense rookies Nic Scourton and Princely Umanmielen are the only ones who have impressed so far, and at the moment they're down to three good lungs between them.

A recipe for success this is not. If Young is going to make the Pro Bowl he's going to need to pull off some real heroics, but he's also going to need the rest of his team to catch up - hopefully some time before the schedule gets significantly tougher in November. If they don't hit their stride before then, we're likely in for another head-rolling offseason.

This article first appeared on Carolina Panthers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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