Hello CSR! Welcome to Brian Answers, part two of your weekly Panthers fan mailbag for everyone! We’re back from the bye week, and all week we’ve talked about Bryce Young’s future on this website. But guess what? This season is not over! And near term Bryce Young is more important. So let’s dive in to all YOUR questions from this week!
HighMiles25: Will we follow 2025 tradition and lose to the Saints, beat the Bucs, lose to the Seahawks, and beat the Bucs?
It wouldn’t be outside the realm of possibility,
honestly. The Saints seem to have figured out a solid game plan against the Panthers offense, though in this scenario the Panthers have a bit more game tape on the Tyler Shough run offense. The Buccaneers don’t seem to want to win the division, so following the rollercoaster loss-win-loss-win formula would just be uniquely Panthers.
Panther-Try: If we make the playoffs, it seems we will most likely play someone from the nfc west. Which NFC West opponent would we want to play in the playoffs?
While we haven’t yet seen the Panthers take on the Seahawks yet, my bet would actually be on them if the Panthers could somehow pull out a wild card win. My main reasoning here is that Sam Darnold seems like he might be turning into a pumpkin again, and the Panthers do have a decent group of corners in Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson who might be able to slow down Jaxon Smith-Njigba in the passing game. The Seahawks defense is really good, so there’s not really any one particular opponent I personally prefer. One might be able to argue the 49ers in a rematch could be a better option, simply because the Panthers would have a better idea of what Kyle Shanahan and the coaches would throw at them.
KeepPounding88: How do I get over this fear that winning the division will cause us to extend Young? I know it wouldn’t happen this offseason, I just feel like it would be enough momentum to pick up his option with the expectation of eventually working on an extension.
This question got asked fairly early in the week, so you can read additional analysis by Jon here and Eric here, so I will try not to rehash too much, go check out their work and the subsequent comments.
My take is, I wouldn’t worry about the Panthers giving Bryce Young an extension barring a miraculous Super Bowl appearance. My read on Bryce is he’s not the type to push for an extension that early, and I know he’s definitely beaten himself up a lot over some of his worst performances. I think the Panthers will eventually pull the trigger on the 5th year option ahead of the deadline (which is after the NFL Draft) in 2026. But I think the expectation should be to pick up the option, give Canales and this staff another year to try and improve the overall roster, and potentially start those conversations in 2027 if all continues in a positive direction. So while I get the anxiety around giving Bryce a ton of money to be their starters going into the future, we can likely table that discussion until the 2027 Offseason.
Randallpink11: We have meaningful football in December and we control our own destiny. How freegan fun is this, Brian?!?!? Do you find yourself smiling and wiggling a little more today than normal?
It has been certainly an interesting season from my standpoint. Here in Eagles/Steelers country where I live, it’s nice to talk about the Panthers having a realistic chance and outside fans actually paying some attention to the team for once. As a conditioned endurer of pain, I am still quietly expecting the wheels to fall off. But the fact that I haven’t completely resigned myself to failure at this point in the season is in itself, an accomplishment for this franchise.
Irishboy: I see some TV pundits believe that after beating the Rams, we have turned a corner and will display more consistency. I however, do not support this, or evidence does not support this as we lost a bad game to the 49ers just 2 games ago. If NO stops the run game on Sunday like the first game, are we doomed or will Bryce play a good game? What will it take to establish more consistency on this offence, apart from Bryce being the obvious?
I still find the Rams game to be an interesting scenario. While Bryce Young and the passing offense came through in the biggest moments when needed, I think that game was more about the Panthers being aggressive and capitalizing on the Rams mistakes, which has been their bread and butter for stealing wins they likely shouldn’t get. The first Saints game actually followed the same formula, unfortunately that time to the Panthers detriment. The Saints will likely employ the same rushing focused defense, with 3 deep DBs for most of the game again. This time though, I think Dave Canales can and should attack in the passing game, and should be confident in Bryce to execute. He now has a better idea of what the Saints will throw at them. Winning in New Orleans is never easy, regardless of how bad the Saints are. But this would be the game for Bryce Young to have ice in his veins, and throw some dimes when they are needed.
@WTMealey: Has the design team for the Panthers started a rough draft of the divsion champ t-shirts yet? Can they put a roller coaster on it?
Bryce Young, wearing a grim reaper cloak, and the severed heads of the Cowboys, Packers, Rams, and hopefully Buccaneers in tow on a roller coaster would be a t-shirt I would buy without hesitation.
sgtx: Real Christmas tree or fake tree?
My tradition for years was always to put a printed out PDF of a Christmas tree on a thumbtack against a wall. But I am in the fake tree area. Just a lot less hassle, especially if you have cats.
Bull123: is 2-2 with a single win against the bucs gonna do it?
As I am writing this the night before, its 14-13 Falcons against the Bucs on Thursday Night Football. When that game resolves, the answer will be more clear. Sound off below in the comments with the playoff scenarios when this publishes. But it seems plausible.
That’s all for this week, Panthers fans! Enjoy game 2 against those lowly Saints, and KEEP POUNDING!
