What happens when you draft the top quarterback prospect and throw him into the fire from the get-go, especially without much of a roster around him? You get the 2023 Carolina Panthers. A 2-15 finish constitutes their worst record in twelve seasons, and even those two wins required game-winning field goals in the final minutes.
Bryce Young had one of the most forgettable rookie seasons with a pedestrian final stat line of 11 touchdown passes, 10 interceptions, and 2877 passing yards. To make matters worse, the Panthers fired head coach Frank Reich after just 11 games, owner David Tepper threw a drink onto Jaguars fans and received a hefty fine, and Carolina doesn’t even own its first-round pick in 2024
Did anything go right for the Panthers? And just how much went wrong?
What Went Right
Derrick Brown recorded 103 tackles on the season. This broke Christian Wilkins’ one-season-old record for a defensive tackle (98). It was a fantastic season for the fourth-year player out of Auburn, but one that did not earn him an initial Pro Bowl roster spot. He did, however, earn the first alternate defensive tackle spot on the NFC’s roster.
The two wins the Panthers did record were over the Texans and Falcons. The Texans win will be remembered as perhaps Carolina’s most impressive of the pair of victories considering Houston went on to win the AFC South as C.J. Stroud took off and completed a fantastic rookie season. The deluge the Panthers overcame to beat Atlanta in Week 15 and ultimately deny the Falcons the NFC South title is also of note.
What Went Wrong
It would be easy to just blanket state “everything” in response to analyzing what went wrong, and for the most part, everything that could go wrong, did. Bryce Young’s struggles have been well-documented, as have Carolina’s off-the-field problems, mostly surrounding David Tepper. Ejiro Evero’s defense turned in the fourth-worst effort of anyone, giving up 24.5 points per game, a stark contrast from the 14th-ranked defense he put together in Denver in 2022. The Panthers also only managed to put up 13.9 points per game on offense, good for joint possession of the worst-scoring offense in the league, tied with the Patriots.
Team Award Winners
MVP – Derrick Brown
Derrick Brown was perhaps the most consistent highlight of a defense plagued by inexperience and bad coaching. As discussed above, Brown’s 103 tackles broke Christian Wilkins’s year-old record from 2022. Brown also recorded one of the Panthers’ eight interceptions across the entirety of 2023 (Week 14 against New Orleans).
Rookie of the Year – Bryce Young
It might seem paradoxical to include Young as Carolina’s Rookie of the Year for 2023 considering his struggles. With that in mind, for just one afternoon against the Packers in Week 16, Young turned back the clock to his glory days at Alabama in a performance that is worth a second look. Despite the 33-30 loss to the Packers, Young put together the best game of his rookie season. He threw for 312 yards on 23 completions and two touchdowns as part of Carolina’s most complete effort this season, keeping the Packers on their toes throughout most of the second half that afternoon. He also added four carries for 17 yards.
Best Offseason Addition – Bradley Bozeman
Bryce Young was sacked 62 times this season behind an offensive line that constantly shuffled personnel due to injuries and new schemes. However, through all of that, Bozeman was perhaps the one bright spot on the Panthers’ line, if only because he was the lone constant on James Campen’s continually shuffling offensive line — a unit that, of course, forced Bryce Young to escape pressure and make frequent mistakes.
Biggest Surprise – Adam Thielen
Thielen left a Vikings team that put together a 13-win campaign in 2022. Although the 33-year-old’s best days are clearly behind him, his production did go up from his final season in Minnesota, going from 716 receiving yards to his third 1000-yard season. Thielen was the most productive receiver in a season where the Panthers’ receiving core did not get to do much. The surprise with Thielen, however, is how he did not record a single touchdown after the Panthers’ Week 6 loss to Miami.
Biggest Disappointment – DJ Chark
Chark’s best game of 2023 came in the aforementioned Week 16 loss to the Packers. In that game, he caught six passes for 98 yards and two touchdowns. With that said, this was the only bright spot in a season where Chark was drastically outperformed by his much older teammate, Thielen. Chark finished the season with 35 catches for 525 yards, half of what Thielen was able to achieve. For what Chark was supposed to be for the Panthers, he did not live up to expectations.
One Burning Question
How do you fix any of this?
General manager Scott Fitterer is gone, but whoever the Panthers hire to replace him will have to climb a mountain to start restoring the Panthers to some resemblance of the team they were during Ron Rivera’s best years. They will have approximately $50 million in cap space to work with, and to start, they need to retain Brian Burns. After that, they must pursue a more dependable wide receiver for Young to work — perhaps one that isn’t over 30 years old or has major red flags as a potential bust. They can’t reliably do this through the draft, as the Bears own the Panthers’ No. 1 pick, and once the Panthers do go on the clock, they will only have six picks to work with. That’s not nearly enough to reliably fill their other needs.
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