Panthers' Bryce Young sharp in preseason finale, says he's ready for opener - ESPN

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — After Friday night's preseason finale against the Detroit Lions, Carolina Panthers rookie quarterback Bryce Young said he's ready for the Sept. 10 opener at Atlanta in every aspect except one.

Sliding.

Young took a lot of ribbing from teammates for the way he sat down on the artificial turf at Bank of America Stadium after a 13-yard scramble on third down that set up his first preseason touchdown in the 26-17 loss.

«Never claimed for it to be one of my strong suits,» Young said with a smile. «We currently have slide lessons already scheduled.»

Young, the 2021 Heisman Trophy winner, later admitted he never slid during his college career at Alabama. Third-string quarterback Matt Corral said it showed.

«He's definitely got to get better at it,» Corral said with Young listening from the next locker. «We've got to bring out the tarp and soap and water.»

Sliding aside, Young finished the preseason with his best effort, completing 7 of 12 passes for 73 yards and a touchdown and scrambling three times for 21 yards. He led two scoring drives to give Carolina a 10-0 lead after producing only a field goal in five drives the first two games.

From what he has put on tape in three preseason games, completing 14 of 24 pass attempts for 129 yards and a touchdown, Young believes he's ready for Week 1.

«That comes because of my coaches and teammates just giving me the confidence and pushing me really throughout practice,» Young said. «That prepares you a lot, and having these games under my belt, it's great to be able to take that and translate to playing against others.»

Carolina coach Frank Reich said Young looked sharp for the second straight preseason game, adding the element of scrambling on Friday night showed yet