Steve Young

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Bryce Young grew up mostly in Pasadena, California, as the only child of Craig Young, a mental health therapist, and Julie Young, a former special education teacher who played college soccer at Cal Poly Pomona. His maternal grandfather was born in Mexico. Young attended Cathedral High School in Los Angeles before transferring to Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, California, in 2018. As a senior at Mater Dei, he was named the Los Angeles Times Player of the Year, California's Gatorade Football Player of the Year, and the USA Today High School Offensive Player of the Year after throwing for 4,528 yards and 58 touchdowns. He finished his high school career with 13,250 passing yards and 152 passing touchdowns. A five-star recruit, Young was ranked by the 247Sports Composite as the No. 2 overall prospect and No. 1 dual-threat quarterback in the 2020 class. After initially committing to USC, Young changed his commitment to Alabama in September 2019. Young became friends with C. J. Stroud while both were high school quarterbacks in Southern California. They were selected first and second overall, respectively, in the 2023 NFL draft.

In Their Own Story

On November 20, 2021, against Arkansas, Young threw for 559 yards to break the Alabama school record for passing yards in a game. He had five touchdowns in the 42–35 win. The previous record was held by Scott Hunter. Young won the Heisman Trophy following the end of the 2021 season, becoming the first Alabama quarterback to win the award. In addition to the Heisman Trophy, Young won AP Player of the Year, the Davey O'Brien Award, the Manning Award, the Maxwell Award, Southeastern Conference (SEC) Offensive Player of the Year, and was a consensus All-American. Overall, Young passed for 4,872 yards, 47 passing touchdowns, and seven interceptions to go along with three rushing touchdowns in 15 games. He led the SEC in passing yards and passing touchdowns in the 2021 season. In his junior year, Young led the Crimson Tide to an 11–2 record, including a 45–20 victory over No. 14 Kansas State in the 2022 Sugar Bowl. He finished in sixth in Heisman Trophy voting. He passed for 3,328 yards, 32 passing touchdowns, and five interceptions to go along with 49 carries for 185 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns in 12 games. On January 2, 2023, Young announced that he would forgo his senior season and enter the 2023 NFL draft.

Reader's Guide

Young was selected by the Carolina Panthers with the first overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft. The Panthers had acquired the pick from the Chicago Bears in a trade that included the ninth overall pick, wide receiver D. J. Moore, and additional draft selections. He signed a four-year, fully guaranteed rookie contract worth $37.9 million on July 21, 2023. Young made his NFL debut on September 10, 2023, in a Week 1 loss to the Atlanta Falcons, throwing his first career touchdown pass to Hayden Hurst. He missed Week 3 with an ankle injury. Young recorded his first NFL win on October 29, when Carolina defeated the Houston Texans 15–13. He finished his rookie season with 2,877 passing yards, 11 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions in 16 starts as the Panthers finished 2–15. Young opened the 2024 season as Carolina's starting quarterback but was benched for veteran Andy Dalton after the Panthers lost their first two games by a combined 60 points. He returned to the starting lineup in Week 8 after Dalton sustained a thumb injury in a car accident. After returning to the lineup, Young helped Carolina defeat the New Orleans Saints and New York Giants in consecutive games, the Panthers' first back-to-back wins since 2022. In the season finale against the Falcons, he passed for three touchdowns and rushed for two more in a 44–38 overtime win. Young finished the season with 2,403 passing yards, 15 passing touchdowns, nine interceptions, and six rushing touchdowns. Following the season, head coach Dave Canales said Young would remain Carolina's starting quarterback entering 2025. Young started 16 games in 2025, completing 304 of 478 passes for 3,011 yards, 23 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions; his yards, touchdowns, completion percentage, and passer rating were career highs. In Week 11, he passed for 448 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions in a 30–27 overtime win over the Atlanta Falcons, breaking Cam Newton's Panthers single-game record of 432 passing yards. The performance earned Young his first NFC Offensive Player of the Week award and the FedEx Air & Ground Players of the Week honor. The Panthers finished the regular season 8–9 and won the NFC South on a three-way tiebreaker, their first division title since 2015. Young made his postseason debut on January 10, 2026, in a 34–31 wild-card loss to the Los Angeles Rams, throwing for 264 yards and a touchdown and rushing for another score. He was ranked No. 98 by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2026. On April 29, 2026, the Panthers exercised the fifth-year option on Young's rookie contract, keeping him under contract through the 2027 season.

Did You Know?

• Bryce Young set the Alabama single-game passing yards record with 559 yards against Arkansas on November 20, 2021.
• He became the first Alabama quarterback to win the Heisman Trophy, doing so in 2021.
• Young broke Cam Newton's Panthers single-game passing record with 448 yards in a Week 11 overtime win over the Falcons in 2025.
• He was selected first overall in the 2023 NFL draft, while his friend C. J. Stroud went second overall to the Houston Texans.
• Young's maternal grandfather was born in Mexico.

Franchise Origins and Expansion

The Carolina Panthers emerged from a visionary bid by Jerry Richardson, a North Carolina native who transitioned from professional football to becoming a successful restaurant magnate before seeking an NFL franchise. Inspired by the success of the Charlotte Hornets in basketball, Richardson founded Richardson Sports to represent both North and South Carolina. They made history immediately by selecting quarterback Kerry Collins as their first-ever draft pick and finishing their inaugural season with a 7–9 record, the best performance ever for an expansion team in its first year.

Early Competitive Success and Turbulence

Following a promising start, the Panthers achieved remarkable success in their second season under head coach Dom Capers. They posted a 12–4 record to win the NFC West division, securing a first-round playoff bye. Their momentum carried them past the defending Super Bowl champions, the Dallas Cowboys, before they fell to the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship Game. George Seifert was hired as his replacement but struggled immensely, culminating in a disastrous 2001 season where the team went 1–15. This performance tied the NFL record for most losses in a single season and broke the record for consecutive losses at that time. Despite these struggles, the era produced a major asset: the drafting of future franchise wide receiver Steve Smith in the third round of the 2001 draft.

The John Fox Era and Super Bowl Run

With the second overall pick that year, they selected Hall of Fame defensive end Julius Peppers from North Carolina. Head coach John Fox was hired to revitalize the squad, leading them to a Super Bowl appearance just one season later. The Panthers finished 11–5 and won the NFC South, embarking on a dominant playoff run where they defeated the Dallas Cowboys, St. Louis Rams, and Philadelphia Eagles to reach Super Bowl XXXVIII. Although they ultimately lost a thrilling contest to the New England Patriots with a score of 32–29, this period marked the franchise's first major championship-level achievement.

Ownership Transition and Modern Resurgence

An independent investigation conducted by the NFL substantiated these claims, resulting in a $2.75 million fine against Richardson before the franchise was sold to David Tepper in July 2018. Under new ownership, the Panthers continued to compete at a high level, notably finishing the 2015 season with a 15–1 record and reaching Super Bowl 50, though they lost that game as well. After several years without playoff appearances, the team returned to postseason contention in 2025. Despite holding an 8–9 regular-season record, they secured the NFC South division title and advanced to the Wild Card Round, where they narrowly fell to the Los Angeles Rams in a 34–31 defeat.