It has been a tough week for Bryce Young, former Alabama superstar and 2023 No. 1 pick. After a horrific start to his second season in the NFL, on the heels of a truly abominable rookie year, Young was benched for journeyman Andy Dalton. But the embattled young quarterback does have at least one big name in his corner: LeBron James.
On Tuesday night, James sent out a message of support for Young on his X (formerly Twitter) account. What's more, James also absolved Young of blame, saying he knows "this ain't on you."
"Bryce Young hold ya head Young!!," James wrote. "Rooting for you and know this ain’t on you! Continue to put the work in and it shall prevail!"
Bryce Young hold ya head Young 🤴🏾!! Rooting for you and know this ain’t on you! Continue to put the work in and it shall prevail! 🙏🏾🫡👑
— LeBron James (@KingJames) September 18, 2024
How much of the blame for this situation should fall on Young's shoulders is a matter of much debate, and James waded into the middle of it here.
On the one hand, the Panthers have put on a masterclass on how to mismanage a young quarterback's career. The front office has completely failed to protect Young by putting together a truly horrific offensive line. What's more, they haven't given him any talent to work with at receiver or running back. His first head coach was fired halfway through his rookie year and there are plenty of off-field distractions surrounding owner David Tepper's behavior.
On the other hand, Young was supposed to have the talent to overcome such issues and that talent has been nowhere to be found. His lack of height is proving to be a more significant issue than expected. At times it feels like he's failing to execute the basics of quarterbacking on any given down, whether he gets time from his porous line or not.
Through the first two games of the year, Young has completed 55.4% of his passes for a total of 245 yards. He's thrown zero touchdowns and three interceptions. His QBR clocks in at a whopping 9.1 and he's suffered six sacks already. The Panthers lost those two games by a combined 60 points. It takes a village for this level of a poor start.
Now the world knows where James falls in the debate. And he has some experience in the matter, having gone first overall in 2003 to a Cavaliers franchise that mismanaged the roster around him to a degree he felt forced to look elsewhere to chase his championship hopes.
At least Young has LeBron in his corner. No matter how things unfold going forward.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as LeBron James Had Strong Message for Bryce Young After Benching: 'This Ain't on You'.
