Hello CSR! This week was a bit of a doozy with the mailbag, but I appreciate all of the participation week in and week out! As a reminder, this is your place to ask all your questions, whether they be Panthers related, football related, or even completely off topic! Most of the questions followed a similar theme this week; burn everything down. Let’s dive right in!
RandallPink11: Good Morning Brian,
This morning I did a quick search because I was qurious.
“What NFL team has the least wins in the past 5 seasons?”
Within seconds, my Googler returned…
“The Carolina Panthers have the fewest wins over the past five seasons, with 24 wins between September 29, 2020, and September 29, 2025”
Are we the new Browns? I used to feel so bad for Browns fans. Do other fans view us like that now? I can’t help but giggle at that thought this morning.
Have a good day, Brian!
Great way to start the mailbag! I will say from a general life experience, most of the time when I tell people I’m a Panthers fan their first question is; “why?”
I don’t feel that the Panthers are the “new Browns”, but they have a lot of building to do before most non-Panthers fans and pundits buy into any kind of upswing. But, constantly changing head coaches and quarterbacks certainly hasn’t helped the team righting the ship and finding a way to be at least optimistic about the future. I have a feeling I’ll be talking a lot about moving on from those two specific areas as we go in this mailbag.
Mickeygrant78: To me, year 3 is a make or break year for Bryce Young. Aside from a few flashes in the pan, overall he’s looked less than adequate as the QB1. At what point do we admit he’s not the answer??…how much more time are we supposed to give him to show everyone he can be an elite quarterback?
This question was presented as a quote, so I am assuming it was asked before the season or at least a few weeks ago.
Bryce Young has had a less than stellar start to the year, and I get fans wanting to move on from him at this point. I think we as fans can make our decision whether or not he’s the answer, but for the organization, I don’t think it really makes sense to move on completely from him until at least the off-season. Bringing in an outside quarterback likely isn’t going to fix the problems since that guy will be learning the playbook on the fly. I don’t necessarily consider benching Bryce outside the realm of possibility, but I think he’ll need to put up a real stinker against the Dolphins for that to be possible. Right now, the Panthers don’t have a ton of options long term, so giving Bryce the full season makes sense, and then I guess we can make a definitive decision. However, so much of the discourse over the last few weeks reminds me of the Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield discussions, and both are currently successful starting quarterbacks in the league. It might make sense to not pull the plug as soon as possible on Bryce, but I’ll reserve the option to change that opinion as the season progresses.
schrodingersblackcat: Will the AT trade prove to be the most brilliant FO move in franchise history?
Without AT, Bryce is utterly exposed. Could this finally be the move that gets our ownership to give up on the pipe dream that Bryce is a franchise QB? Could it help us avoid getting trapped in QB purgatory for years and breaking the bank with an oversized contract for an undersized QB? Could it even be the move that finally convinces ownership/FO to stop getting cute in the draft and start making obvious, conventional choices like winning franchises do?
I know, know… That’s an awful lot of optimism for a team whose brainiac point guard QB is in his third season and still throwing the ball away on 4th down.
But is it possible, Brian?
I don’t think the Panthers are signing Bryce Young to a long term extension if these struggles continue, regardless of what you think of the front office. I would hope if the season goes in the direction many fans are expecting, the Panthers will pivot to a full rebuild, regardless of what they do at quarterback. Adam Thielen being traded should not be considered the reason Bryce Young is faltering, but maybe getting Jalen Coker back will stabilize some things since he was clearly the heir apparent to that role in the offense. I guess give it four weeks and we’ll see.
SwampPanther: Did you watch the postgame locker room after the Atlanta win? When Bryce stood up and gave the game ball to Canales did it seem like all the energy got sucked out of the room? Went from YAY!!! to golf claps.
Is the team as fed up with Bryce as we are and is that leading to the lethargy on the field knowing that their effort is for nothing?
I did watch it, I didn’t come away feeling the energy got sucked away, they just spent a couple of minutes celebrating the win. That tends to be the case as the coaches and leaders give out their praise before the last huddle and break.
Here’s the video if you’d like to watch it. Tell me what you think.
KSUDD: What are the odds that Canales is the coach next year? I find it highly unlikely Tepper fires another coach mid-season while he tries to rehab his reputation from 2023, but he is a petty man and at some point he will burn Canales’ salary to make a change.
I’ve said it in previous mailbags following a loss, but I will have lost basically all faith in David Tepper and this front office if they move on from Dave Canales, a developing head coach, less than two years into his tenure. He deserves the scrutiny and criticism, don’t get it twisted. But the Panthers Offseason definitely seemed like they were looking at the long term picture with their draft picks and many of their decisions. If they blow up the coaching staff (outside of Ejiro Evero, who isn’t under contract for 2026 anyway), I’m no longer going to feel any positiveity about the future. The Panthers can’t keep blowing up their foundation and then expecting it all to get fixed in less than two seasons.
dayneb12: I got a “what-if” scenario for you. Where do you think the Panthers would be right now had they accepted the two first rounders and second rounder from the Rams? Who would they have taken with those picks?
This is really hard to say. I think they probably wouldn’t have moved on from Baker Mayfield/Sam Darnold if they had all of that draft capital. They’d probably be a bit more competitive, but I also wonder how long this would have dragged out Matt Rhule/Scott Fitterer’s tenure, which likely would not have been great from a long term team building perspective either.
KeepPounding88: Who do you think will be our starter next year: Bryce, a veteran QB from Free Agency, or a top draft pick?
I think the Panthers will bring in a quarterback via free agency to compete with Bryce Young, and possibly draft a guy if they have a high enough draft pick. I’m not sure who ends up starting, but I think you go into camp with a competition and let it shake out, if things continue the way they have been this season.
Panthers75: Is the light at the end of the tunnel a train? We all knew the game against Atlanta was a mirage but I dont think many of us thought they were this bad. I really thought this team took some steps forward at the end of last season. It just seems like everything they do ends up not working. If we lose to Miami who’s the sacrificial firing?
It is certainly possible that the Atlanta win and the New England loss end up being opposite ends of the spectrum for this team, and we see a ton of performances in between those extremes this season. But I digress, if the Panthers have an equally horrific loss to the Dolphins this Sunday as compared to the Patriots last week, its possible the Panthers relieve Ejiro Evero of his duties. I’m not sure how much overall good that does for this team, but I could see it.
Galadhron: If the team suddenly brought back John Fox or Riverboat Ron and coordinators of their choosing, which one would be able to squeeze as much life as they could out of this current squad?
Probably Ron Rivera. At least he might go for it past midfield more than Canales has this year.
Revshawn: Alright Brian! The boys and I are doing a challenge. Sugar Free Drinks in October! The challenge is that we aren’t drinking Cokes or sugary drinks of any kind for the entire month! Liquor is fine just don’t overdo it!
Are you in or are you out?
I’m going to need a lot of liquor to get through October with this team. Sorry Rev.
Chef: Brian, we all know what the biggest question is, what is the best/cheapest/easiet/fastest way to fix it and move on?
I don’t think moving on from Bryce Young makes sense yet. Surely, if this performance continues, don’t pick up the 5th year option. But Bryce Young did fine while he was benched last season. I think you bring in a veteran and a rookie/younger players and just ramp the competition up in 2026, and see what happens. I don’t think Bryce Young is the kind of guy who will cause locker room rifts if the team decides to go in a different direction next season, and I’d hate to add him to the Baker Mayfield/Sam Darnold Hall of Fame “guys the Panthers should probably have given a little more time to.”
storybook: I’m afraid the Carolina Panthers have joined the handful of sports organizations who seem incapable of making a good decision. This group includes teams like the LA Angels, NY Jets, Cleveland Browns, Sacramento Kings, and Charlotte Hornets. Is there anything you see that would separate the Panthers from this company of teams? .. Or, what is the next major decision the Panthers should make that could put them on a better trajectory?
In my opinion, the best thing the Panthers can do is don’t burn everything down to the bedrock less than two seasons in. These sweeping decisions are what got them into the predicaments of the last couple seasons in the first place. Again, in my opinion.
positivebob: Give Hooker a fair shot to win the QB job? I know they’ll stick with BY for a while and I don’t know how HH looks in practice, but if BY continues to be unproductive, especially after Coker gets back, and Hooker looks like he might have something, even if it’s not much, why not give him some live snaps, even if he doesn’t start. What have they got to lose? In a blowout like last week, I’d rather see what Hooker can do than run Dalton out there again. We know Dalton. Give HH a chance to surprise us or prove he ain’t it.
I’m fine with Hendon Hooker getting some snaps if things continue to go off the rails with Bryce at the helm. I don’t know how much better it’ll be, but exploring all options without sacrificing future assets mid-season is something I can’t oppose.
RebuildingSince95: Good evening Brian,
Once the Bryce Experiment is over this year, I have a strong feeling that the team will let Dalton go (keeping Bryce as a backup next year). I also think Canales will get 2 QBs of his choice. Which 2026 free agent or current backup QB do you think he brings in? What QB do you think he drafts?
Other commentors brought his name up, but Marcus Mariota would make a lot of sense as a stopgap guy who would fit Dave Canales’s offense quite well as a veteran. I could also see them taking a chance on Zach Wilson or Trey Lance, as guys you bring in to straight up compete and see if he wins the job. I have a hard time trying to nail down a quarterback since we don’t really know where the Panthers will be picking, but lets go with LaNorris Sellers or Dante Moore. Spice up the athleticism a bit.
That’s all this week, Panthers fans. I’m exhausted, I am hoping we can be a little happier with the direction of the team for next week’s mailbag. Not holding my breath though. KEEP POUNDING!
