Carolina Panthers head coach Frank Reich has been saying it since the spring—Andy Dalton wasn’t signed just to sit on the bench and look pretty, no matter how good that hair looks. And on Wednesday, he said it again.
Starting quarterback Bryce Young, who is dealing with an ankle injury, popped up as a non-participant in this afternoon’s walk-through. While we’ll learn much more about the rookie’s status tomorrow, especially considering that Thursday will play host to an actual practice, Reich was asked about the possibility of Dalton having to start in Week 3 against the Seattle Seahawks.
Buy Panthers Tickets“If Andy’s the starter, we got a lot of confidence,” he said. “This is why you bring someone like Andy in. Our goal is to put our team in position to win championships. And even despite a tough start—that’s still our vision, that’s still our goal, that’s what we’re working towards.
“And my experience personally, as a player and as a coach, is that your’e gonna need somebody for one game or two or three or somewhere along the line. And you’re gonna need to win those games. And if Andy plays, we believe he gives us a very good chance to win.”
Dalton’s last start came against the Panthers to close out the 2022 campaign. That Week 18 matchup in New Orleans saw the three-time Pro Bowler complete 15 of his 25 throws for 171 yards and a touchdown in an ugly Carolina win.
The former second-round pick finished his 12th NFL season with 2,871 passing yards, 18 scores and nine interceptions over 14 games.
