The Carolina Panthers open the 2024-25 NFL football season with a disappointing 47-10 loss to the New Orleans Saints in New Orleans. The game already started off on the wrong foot for the Panthers, after the Saints put up a 59 yard touchdown pass on the board in just the first three minutes of the game. Then after once the Panthers get on offense Bryce Young follows it up with an interception on his first pass of the 2024-25 season. The Saints scored on all six of their first half drives, while the Panthers didn’t even cross the 50 yard line until the final minute going into halftime, which allowed for a field goal before the half.
The Carolina Panthers And Second Year Bryce Young May Be Worse Than They Look
![Carolina Panthers: How Can Panthers Turn Things Around After Disastrous Week 1? 1 Carolina Panthers Bryce Young](https://gridironheroics.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/USATSI_24187191_168400517_lowres.webp)
The New Orleans Saints aren’t by any means a top team in the league, but they dominated in all phases of Sundays game against the Carolina Panthers. Bryce Young seemed to show zero improvement from last season under new head coach Dave Canales, who ironically people call the “quarterback whisperer”, as he was intercepted not only for his first pass of the season, but to start the second half he sailed the ball way over Adam Thielen’s head for another horrific interception.
His new targets didn’t help, the defense stunk it up, and the only time the Panthers got something going when Young scored his first career rushing touchdown in the third quarter. Which, even that small achievement took more effort than it needed to, as the ball came out after he crossed the goal-line. So it was originally ruled a fumble at the one yard line until the officials changed it upon review.
Bryce Young finished the game with a 36.2 passer rating, completing 13 out of 30 pass attempts for a whooping 161 yards, two interceptions, and no passing touchdowns. If this continues it may be time to pull the plug and switch to veteran quarterback Andy Dalton, but only if Bryce Young continues to struggle getting thing offense rolling.
New Head Coach Dave Canales Embarrassing Head Coaching Debut
![Carolina Panthers: How Can Panthers Turn Things Around After Disastrous Week 1? 2 carolina panthers, dave canales](https://gridironheroics.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/USATSI_24187786-scaled-e1725913847456.jpg)
Dave Canales couldn’t have had a worse head coaching debut, absolute embarrassment. The 31-3 deficit at halftime was the second largest for a coach in their first game since Brian Flores and the Miami Dolphins when they trailed 42-10 at the half against the Baltimore Ravens back in 2019. Canales post-game went on to say.
“Well, certainly not the outcome that I was hoping for. Before I even got to watch the film I can just talk about three turnovers, we gave up on the defensive side, a blocked punt.”
“Those are critical factors. It flips the field, it gives them more possessions. And even when we had our chances, we didn’t get our first completion for a while there. So, just all around, poor execution in all phases.”
And coach Canales couldn’t have been more right as the Panthers defense was zero help to Bryce Young. They allow New Orleans to score on their first nine possessions. The Panthers trailed 17-0 before Bryce Young could even complete his first pass of the game. The Saints build up a 30-0 lead in the second quarter before Eddy Pineiro finally got the Panthers on the board with a field goal. The point is no matter how bad the Carolina Panthers got beat, they got beat. Hopefully they improve and find the solution to their problems, but not an ideal start to the 2024-25 regular season.