Dave Canales sends strong message about Bryce Young’s leadership growth after the first day of Panthers OTAs
Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young started going viral for showing his leadership traits in a vocal manner on the field during the first day of organized team activities.
Day 1 of organized team activities is in the books for the Carolina Panthers and quarterback Bryce Young has already started creating a buzz for himself on social media after a clip surfaced of him getting after the offense.
Practice opened on Tuesday amid a downpour of rain with the team practicing outdoors just passed the construction of the new indoor practice facility. While it would’ve been ideal to be inside, the elements certainly gave the team good practice you don’t get everyday as the team dealt with handling wet footballs.
As expected, the conditions led to some sloppiness with the offense in the passing game and once the weather cleared up, Young wasn’t having it anymore with the mistakes.
“I heard him get a little passionate about – we got a little bit of a monsoon for a second there at practice – once the rain had passed, he was like ‘let’s lock back, we gotta come up with these balls.’ I think he said it in a little more colorful language than that,” head coach Dave Canales explained. “But, I just love it. I love the fact that he’s taking ownership and the guys see that and rally around that. It’s something they all appreciate.”
Carolina Panthers need to see more signs of leadership like that from Bryce Young in 2026
As Young heads into his fourth season leading the team, this is exactly the kind of leadership and ownership the Panthers need to see out of their former number one overall pick with a potential long-term deal on the horizon.
On-field performance will obviously go a long way toward Young securing his first big extension with the team, but this level of leadership is something the team wanted to see more of from their expected franchise quarterback.
“Just total command of the system,” Canales said when asked what he’s seen from Young after the first day of OTAs. “Knowing what he’s looking for, the timing of things. The more that he owns it, the more that he’s looking for specific things out of the tight ends, wide outs, and backs as the concepts come alive.”
After practice, veteran guard Robert Hunt added that Young’s got those leadership qualities “in him, for sure” and now it’s about continuing to show that level of command and leadership to the team on a daily basis.
It’s only Day 1 with plenty more work to come this offseason, but it’s an encouraging first sign of Young taking that next step as a leader for this offense and the entire team.