Whether he was looking for it or not, Carolina Panthers head coach Frank Reich didn’t get his revenge on Sunday.
Reich spoke with reporters following his team’s painful 27-13 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, the organization that fired him nearly a year to the day. And a huge reason for the disappointing defeat was the generous play of his quarterback, Bryce Young.
The rookie tossed three interceptions, with two going for touchdown returns by cornerback Kenny Moore II. So, with Young fresh off his worst pro outing and a short turnaround ahead, Reich was asked if he’ll consider benching the No. 1 overall pick in favor of veteran Andy Dalton.
“I suppose that’s a fair question,” he replied. “But I can honestly tell you that thought’s never even came close to entering my mind.”
Young, who played his best game in a win over the Houston Texans just last week, turned in an extremely worrisome performance this afternoon. He completed 24 of his 39 throws for 173 yards, a score and the three picks—mustering up a lowly 48.3 passer rating against one of the worst defenses in the league.
The Panthers, now at 1-7, are set to travel to The Windy City for a Thursday night showdown with the Chicago Bears. But Reich believes Young’s confidence will be just fine by then.
“Listen, I’ve seen this happen to the best quarterbacks in the history of the game,” he later added. “They all have games like this. And sure, it’s gonna be easy to put it on the quarterback. But, you bounce back. That’s what makes the great ones. And it’s a long road.
“I’ve said this many times . . . the quarterback journey, developing into the franchise quarterback—it’s a long road. So, I/we believe very strongly in Bryce.”
