OTAs have gotten going on Monday with No. 1 pick Bryce Young taking the majority of first-team snaps at the Panthers’ first spring practice.
Head coach Frank Reich was complimentary of all three quarterbacks on the roster in his post-practice press conference, saying Young, Andy Dalton, and Matt Corral displayed strong decision-making and ball placement. But the story with the club’s QBs is going to be how quickly Young adapts to the pro game as the club gets this year’s top draftee ready to play.
When asked specifically about Young on Monday, Reich called the young QB’s command “10 out of 10.”
“Just complete command, control, poise,” Reich said. “You could tell the way he was seeing it, the way he was working through progressions, accuracy in the throw, ball placement of the throw, it was all very good.”
Reich also noted that he feels like it’s a good thing to have a veteran like Dalton on the roster, too.
“It’s really good for Bryce to kind of see Andy handle things the way he’s handled things,” Reich said. “And, obviously, Bryce has picked it up extremely fast. But it feels like we’ve got a good plan and we’re doing the right thing.”
While there aren’t any contact practices in the spring, the Panthers still plan to have Young get his reps with the first-team offensive line, Reich said. The club is especially cognizant of who’s playing center when Young is in.
There’s a long way to go between now and Week One, but so far Young has checked every box when it comes to potentially being a Day One starter.