Things could be looking up for Bryce Young as a fantasy football asset

Things could not have gone much worse for Bryce Young in his rookie season with the Carolina Panthers.

The No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft, Young completed less than 60 percent of his passes and threw for only 11 touchdowns with 10 interceptions. He averaged just 5.5 yards per completion.

In a league where QB scoring includes six points per TD pass, one point for every 25 yards passing, a 5-point bonus for going over 300 yards passing (and 5 more for every 100 yards thereafter), and a loss of three points for turnovers, Young scored just 158.3 points in 2023.

That ranked 26th among QBs and was behind names like Jake Browning and Joshua Dobbs. Meanwhile, C.J. Stroud, the No. 2 pick in the draft, was the No. 8 scoring QB on the season.

Young will have to be much better in year two to avoid being consider a major bust by both NFL and fantasy football standards and fortunately for him, there are signs that he will have the chance to do that.

Bryce Young will now be playing under Dave Canales

The Panthers hired Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Dave Canales this offseason and that is great news for Young. Canales is being considered somewhat of a quarterback whisperer and there is good reason for that.

In his last two seasons, Canales has worked directly with Geno Smith (in Seattle) and Baker Mayfield this past season. Each of those quarterbacks had the best years of their careers in those seasons but most of all, both of them had those seasons despite being previously written off by so many people, including fantasy football players.

If anyone is going to turn Young around and push him in the right direction, it's Canales.

Bryce Young has a true No. 1 wide receiver

The Panthers also made a big move this past week when they acquired Diontae Johnson via trade from the Pittsburgh Steelers. Johnson gives Young a legitimate threat in the passing game, something he didn't experience much of in his rookie season.

Adam Thielen played much better than most probably expected in his first season with the Panthers, but he is going to be 34 years old in August and is not a No. 1 wide receiver. Johnson will be 28 in July and though he is coming off his quietest season as a pro (most would blame Pittsburgh's QB situation for that) he did have a career-best 14.1 yards per catch in 2023.

Johnson gives Young an experienced, big-play guy who can open up the passing game in ways the Panthers could not pull off last year. His presence should also help get second-year wide receiver Jonathan Mingo on a better path.

Everything should look better in Carolina next season as the team realizes that it is committed to Young so it needs to provide him with the best opportunity for success. The Panthers could find him even more weapons in the upcoming draft.

If you have Young in a dynasty league, don't throw in the towel yet.

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