Resurfaced Clip Of Panthers Owner David Tepper Shows Bryce Young Never Had A Shot To Succeed

Getty Image

Most fans were in shock on Monday when the Carolina Panthers made the remarkable decision to bench second-year quarterback Bryce Young.

Carolina traded a ton of assets to move up and select Young with the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, and while he’s been a complete disaster, so has the rest of the organization.

Young was reportedly blindsided by the decision, but a resurfaced clip of Panthers owner David Tepper from Amazon’s All or Nothing: A Season with the Carolina Panthers in 2018 shows that maybe we should have seen it coming.

Carolina Panthers Owner David Tepper Has A History Of Meddling With Team

Former Panthers director of content Bill Voth initially directed fans to the episode. While Twitter user @OptimistPanther then found the exact clip Voth referred to.

The now-infamous clip shows Tepper speaking with then Carolina general manager Marty Hurney after a 12-9 loss to the New Orleans Saints.

Cam Newton, who was dealing with a shoulder injury, completed just 16-of-29 passes for 131 yards, no touchdowns and an interception.

Tepper had seen enough and appeared to have made the call to bench the former NFL MVP. Backup quarterback Taylor Heinecke started the following week in a 24-10 loss to the Falcons. Carolina then started Kyle Allen in the final week of the season and has been in quarterback purgatory ever since.

Newton was never the same quarterback. And Tepper may well have been right about that. But it shows that the owner has a short leash and isn’t afraid to meddle in football decisions.

Young’s career numbers are brutal. In 18 career games, he’s completed less than 60 percent of his passes for 3,122 yards, 11 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.

But the Panthers haven’t done anything to help him along the way. And now it appears Tepper is already prepared to cast him aside.

Unfortunately for Carolina fans, it does not appear he has any plan for what comes next.