{"id":912683,"date":"2026-06-07T19:42:29","date_gmt":"2026-06-07T19:42:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/912683\/"},"modified":"2026-06-07T19:42:29","modified_gmt":"2026-06-07T19:42:29","slug":"panthers-invite-contract-trap-waiting-on-26m-star","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/912683\/","title":{"rendered":"Panthers Invite Contract Trap Waiting On $26M Star"},"content":{"rendered":"

The latest Bryce Young<\/a> contract rumors could bite the Carolina Panthers<\/a> during the 2027 offseason if he exceeds expectations. While the team picked up the QB\u2019s fifth-year option instead of signing him to a new deal, could that affect any future talks if he has another outstanding season? Most likely. It means Young won\u2019t be looking for a bargain contract, and after the latest moves the Panthers made on offense, he could explode this upcoming season.<\/p>\n

Despite \u201cloving\u201d the QB, the Panthers are reportedly playing the waiting game<\/a> before they\u2019re sold on him. This means that while they love to keep him as their long-term QB, there\u2019s no guarantee that he\u2019ll be the permanent starter forever. It wasn\u2019t too long ago when head coach Dave Canales benched the young starter during the 2024 season. Deja Vu could be waiting to happen this upcoming year, and it won\u2019t be a pleasant one to watch if you\u2019re a Panthers fan.<\/p>\n

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The team traded veteran Andy Dalton<\/a> to Philadelphia<\/a> this offseason while signing Kenny Pickett<\/a> to back up their starter. There\u2019s some speculation there already, but nobody should anticipate Pickett starting for this Carolina offense anytime soon unless they need it.<\/p>\n

\"Bryce<\/p>\n

Main Photo: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Bryce Young Contract: Panthers Invite Massive $26M Trap<\/p>\n

It could get interesting pretty quickly this upcoming season. Young has the leverage in this situation, but could he replicate his same level of play, similar to the 2025 campaign? According to Spotrac<\/a>, he\u2019s projected at $37.2 million per year for his next deal. The QB could ask for more depending on how he plays. Could they reach the NFC Championship during the 2027 playoffs? It\u2019s very possible.<\/p>\n

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The Panthers arguably aren\u2019t the same team they were last season. On defense, the team signed two high-stakes linebackers, Jaelan Phillips<\/a> and Devin Lloyd<\/a>, to strengthen its pass-rushing unit. This should excite Young, who could receive an easy field advantage if any of these new defensive men turn the ball over.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, on offense, the team drafted WR Chris Brazzell<\/a> to compete for a starting role with Xavier Legette<\/a>, who\u2019s been named as the top trade candidate. Despite losing Rico Dowdle<\/a> to Pittsburgh<\/a>, RB Jonathan Brooks<\/a> is finally making his debut in the league after suffering a season-ending injury last offseason. They still have Chuba Hubbard<\/a>, who hasn\u2019t shown any signs of inconsistency other than being hurt for a few games.<\/p>\n

Are the Panthers Actually Playing Smart?<\/p>\n

You can argue, yes and no. Let\u2019s say that it works in favor of the Panthers, and Young doesn\u2019t hold up his end of the stick. It\u2019s still a lose-lose situation either way, and if the QB doesn\u2019t lead this offense to a postseason appearance, the team is back to the drawing board. On the other hand, the QB winds up proving that he\u2019s a top 5 pocket-passer, which wouldn\u2019t be the best news in terms of salary cap.<\/p>\n

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What the Panthers could\u2019ve done is extend the QB to a new low-stakes two-year deal, because at least it would\u2019ve bought the team money, for now. They could\u2019ve used that same contract that they should\u2019ve offered this offseason, and added an incentive similar to what the Broncos<\/a> did with standout CB Pat Surtain<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Buffalo Bills<\/a>\u2019 Josh Allen<\/a> is leading the QB contract market, but nobody should expect the Panthers to dish out that kind of money. However, the future deal of Ravens Lamar Jackson<\/a> could complicate what Young is looking for. The Panthers have a solid offense with a promising, speedy receiver in Brazzell, a breakout Tetairoa McMillan<\/a> and a solid Jalen Coker<\/a>. Carolina may have made the wrong decision, but that will ultimately come with how the 2026 season plays out as a lose-lose scenario.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The latest Bryce Young contract rumors could bite the Carolina Panthers during the 2027 offseason if he exceeds…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":912684,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2075],"tags":[10122,232,1476,53,235,260,2567,65436,1751,5412,7,16251,3545,7151,872,570,895,6,236,242,520,7152,1453,1505],"class_list":["post-912683","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-carolina-panthers","tag-andy-dalton","tag-broncos","tag-bryce-young","tag-buffalo-bills","tag-carolina","tag-carolina-panthers","tag-carolinapanthers","tag-chris-brazzell","tag-chuba-hubbard","tag-devin-lloyd","tag-football","tag-jaelan-phillips","tag-jalen-coker","tag-jonathan-brooks","tag-josh-allen","tag-kenny-pickett","tag-lamar-jackson","tag-nfl","tag-panthers","tag-philadelphia","tag-pittsburgh","tag-rico-dowdle","tag-tetairoa-mcmillan","tag-xavier-legette"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116710535601466736","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/912683","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=912683"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/912683\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/912684"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=912683"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=912683"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=912683"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}