After two ugly losses to start the 2024 NFL season, the Carolina Panthers looked like the worst team in the league, and then they made a questionable move to bench former No. 1 pick Bryce Young in favor of veteran quarterback Andy Dalton ahead of the Week 3 matchup against the Las Vegas Raiders on the road at Allegiant Stadium.
New head coach Dan Canales seemed to have enough of the Young experiment for the Panthers and, as a result of making the move, took a lot of heat ahead of Week 3 because it seemed too early to give up on the development of a second-year quarterback.
It seemed as though everyone with a microphone was criticizing Canales for his coaching job with the Panthers, with former NFL head coach Rex Ryan among those who were critical of him.
While on ESPN Sunday NFL Countdown, Ryan claims he knew the hiring of Canales would be a disaster for the Panthers.
“I knew it was gonna be a disaster,” Ryan said.
The ESPN Sunday NFL Countdown crew on Bryce Young and the Carolina Panthers.
“Right now, the laughingstock of the National Football League is the Carolina Panthers.” – Randy Moss
“I knew it was gonna be a disaster..” – Rex Ryan on the Dave Canales hire 🏈📺🎙️ pic.twitter.com/oH0n7QLyFA
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) September 22, 2024
Ironically enough, when writing this article, the Panthers are leading the Raiders, 21-7, heading into halftime in Las Vegas.
Although the Raiders aren’t a great team offensively, Las Vegas has a formidable defense led by superstar defensive end Maxx Crosby, so the move to Dalton seems to be working.
However, there’s another half to play, and anything can happen, but win or lose, there are still a lot of questions surrounding the future of this Panthers squad.
