Former Alabama star quarterback Bryce Young is now increasingly likely to be the first prospect to hear his name called in next week’s NFL Draft.
Young has spent the pre-draft process visiting with some of the teams slated to select in the top-10 of the 2023 NFL Draft. Now that the annual event is nearing, Young is done with these visits.
NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero reported on Monday that Young has opted to cancel his remaining visits with teams in the lead up to the event starting next Thursday in Kansas City.
This is the clearest indication yet that Young expects to go No. 1 overall to the Carolina Panthers. And while the youngster has met with the Houston Texans (second overall pick), other reports suggest Carolina is locked in on the former Crimson Tide star.
It was earlier this offseason that Carolina pulled off a blockbuster trade with the Chicago Bears for the first pick in the NFL Draft. In quarterback purgatory ever since Cam Newton‘s fall from grace back in 2019, the Panthers made this trade with their eyes on a signal caller.
Up until recently, Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud had been in the mix with Young for the first pick. His draft stock seems to be slipping some with 10 days to go.
Related: Bryce Young NFL Draft profile and scouting report
Bryce Young to the Carolina Panthers makes perfect sense
In today’s hot take society, narratives surrounding Young have been aplenty during the pre-draft process. When the former Heisman winner was measured at 5-foot-10 during the NFL Scouting Combine, one narrative made headlines concluding that he’s too short to star at the next level.
It’s a worn-out belief, one that the Panthers obviously don’t believe in. Heck another smallish former Alabama quarterback in that of Jalen Hurts (6-foot-1) just inked the richest contract in NFL history with his Philadelphia Eagles team.
What we do know is that Young was absolutely dynamite during his two-year run as Alabama’s starter against elite-level SEC competition.
- Bryce Young college stats: 66% completion, 8,356 passing yards, 80 TD, 12 INT
Young is an ideal fit in Carolina. The team has an offensive-minded head coach in Frank Reich slated to man the sidelines for the first time with the Panthers. A former NFL quarterback himself, Reich has worked well with youngsters at this position in the past.