At the end of the 2023 season, the Carolina Panthers looked like they had made an all-time NFL draft blunder.
They traded a king's ransom for and used the No. 1 overall pick on Alabama's Bryce Young, who went on to have a very poor rookie season. Meanwhile, the Houston Texans took Ohio State's C.J. Stroud second, and he had one of the best rookie campaigns we have ever seen from a quarterback.
But in the years since Stroud's game has cooled off a tad, while Young's has steadily risen. And this season, they're both on fire—with Stroud having passing for 1,714 yards, nine touchdowns and one interception and Young at 1,549 yards, 11 touchdowns and two interceptions.
Now, it appears both Young and Stroud are set to cash in this coming offseason, per
Jeremy Fowler at ESPN. Fowler writes:
The Texans were willing to extend Stroud on a deal worth well above $50 million per year. But Stroud saw a bigger picture: a growing quarterback market and his place in it. Stroud and Carolina's Bryce Young both appear well-positioned for offseason negotiations . . .
$50 million a year will probably be the absolute basement for these two. What ultimately matters most, however, is the amount of guaranteed money on the pacts—since NFL teams rarely honor the full contract, anyway.
On that score, $100 million is not out of the question. 12 of the top 13 highest-paid quarterbacks in the league got at least that much guaranteed on their respective deals.
That may sound like a lot—and it is. But it's a fair market price for the level Young is playing at right now.
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This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: NFL insider: Panthers QB Bryce Young 'well-positioned' for offseason negotiations
