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The Bryce Young ankle saga continued Wednesday.
And it won’t lose steam anytime soon.
The starting quarterback for the Carolina Panthers was officially listed as “did not practice” on Wednesday. Such a development wasn’t surprising after he left the third quarter of the New York Jets game with an ankle injury and didn’t return.
But Young, still, was out on the field with his uniform on, working off to the side with the other injured players. He was doing some light jogging, pedaling on an exercise bike, working through some simple cuts — all without a noticeable limp.
Such was the fodder that head coach Dave Canales answered to Wednesday.
“I saw a little bit of it,” Canales said of Young’s work to the side of the field. “He did more than what he did yesterday, so that’s good. That’s our plan right now. Each day, we push him a little bit more, see if we can get him out there in a different capacity. He wasn’t able to practice today, but was working on the side, doing some movement stuff. So we’ll just take it day to day and make the best decision.”
When asked whether Canales was ready to declare veteran backup Andy Dalton the starter on Sunday, the second-year head coach said, “Not right now.”
He added: “But Andy did take all the reps today with the group. And Hendon Hooker and Mike White are here. First day to get to look at (newly signed Mike White) in-person, to see him throw. He did a great job. Hendon handled most of the scout reps there.”
Young was playing some of the best football of his NFL career when a sack from a Jets defender — one that ended with defensive lineman Jowon Briggs stepping on Young’s calf, which prompted Young’s right-ankle tweak — took him out of the game. His passer rating those three games: 90.7, 114.8 and 88.4. He also saw six touchdowns and two interceptions in that span, too.
Dalton came in and played well in Young’s stead against the Jets. His highlight was a 33-yard pass to Xavier Legette on a late third-and-8 that sealed the contest.
Canales reiterated Wednesday that the offense doesn’t change that much when Dalton or Young aren’t back there. Receivers Tetairoa McMillan and Jalen Coker said the same things Wednesday. This said, as Canales mentioned, the whole group is “pulling for Bryce.”
“He’s pushing, and he’s trying to make himself available for Sunday,” Canales said of Young. “But we have to take it day to day.”
Here’s what else that was notable from Wednesday’s practice.
Robert Hunt might be able to come back by bye week
Despite Canales’ reticence to be too declarative about his quarterback situation, he was quite forthcoming about another key offensive player currently recovering from injury — right guard Robert Hunt.
Hunt, the jovial 2024 Pro Bowler, hasn’t played a game since Week 2, when he tore his biceps just as the Panthers were vying to make one of the biggest comebacks in franchise history in Arizona. He hasn’t been back out on the practice field in that time, either.
But on Wednesday — though he was not practicing, as he’s still on injured reserve — Hunt was back on the grass working off to the side, where Young was and where other IR guys have been. He wore a massive brace on his arm.
Canales told reporters that it was great to see Hunt back on the grass — and that he’s “ahead of schedule” in his recovery.
“I’ve noticed over the years that guys who believe they heal fast end up healing fast,” Canales said. “That just puts you in a positive mindset to be able to get after your rehab, push the envelope and say, ‘Hey, we had this prescribed for you today; can I do a little bit more? Or is this good enough, can we stop here?’
“David Moore (out with an elbow injury) is another one who’s really attacking his rehab. Both guys are in there pushing each other. But it was good to have Rob out there on the grass, moving around.”
Canales added that Hunt could potentially return to practice “somewhere around the bye week, so that could be something down the road.” The Panthers’ bye week is Week 14.
The Panthers’ offensive line has undergone immense injury attrition to date. In fact, against the Jets, the unit put out its sixth different starting offensive line in seven games. (Sixth in seventh!) Hunt’s return would be a huge boost of energy to this group — despite the fact that it has held up well despite the changes, furnishing solid-to-explosive days for Rico Dowdle in Weeks 5 and 6 and then Dowdle and Chuba Hubbard in Week 7.
“It’s definitely encouraging,” starting left tackle Ickey Ekwonu told The Observer on Wednesday. “Obviously, Rob, he’s going to do everything he can to get back out there for us. He’s a fighter and everything, and we definitely appreciate having him around the building as much as he’s been around. It’s hard to mimic his spirit. So it’s definitely nice to have the energy around the building.”
Trevin Wallace excited to see Shaq Thompson on the other sideline
Sunday might mark a pretty emotional return to Bank of America Stadium for one Buffalo Bills player.
Shaq Thompson, the longtime Carolina Panthers inside linebacker whom the team let walk during free agency in March, is now a contributor for the Buffalo Bills.
His year in Buffalo is the first one outside the Carolina franchise that drafted him 25th overall in 2015.
Trevin Wallace told The Observer on Wednesday that it’ll be “fun” seeing Thompson out on the other sideline, and that Thompson texted Wallace earlier this week. Thompson is still Wallace’s mentor, after all; he watches all of Wallace’s tape and lets him know what he does right and wrong each week — something Wallace really appreciates.
“I already know that after the game’s over with he’s going to let me know, ‘Hey, Trev, I see you doing this, I think you can do this better,’” said Wallace, the fast-talking, smiley second-year linebacker. “Or if I do something good, he’ll let me know. I already know what it’s going to be.”
Wallace added: “He’s still invested in me, and knows the player I can be. He’s still invested in what I can become. I love that. Even when he texts me, he says, ‘This is coming from your big brother, your OG. I see you need to do this better.’ … I love that.”
Injury report
Here’s the official injury report from the Panthers on Wednesday:
Did not participate: OLB DJ Wonnum (rest), QB Bryce Young (ankle)
Limited: OLB Princely Umanmielen (ribs), OL Damien Lewis (shoulder), CB Jaycee Horn (rest)
Quick hits
- There are now 52 players still in contention to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame this year after another round of votes have gone through. Four of them are Panthers: LB Luke Kuechly, WR Steve Smith Sr., TE Greg Olsen, CB Charles Tillman. Check out the full list at the PFHOF website.
- Nic Scourton had a heck of a game against the Jets. Not only did he notch his first NFL sack — he now has the most single-game rookie pressures in Panthers history, since the stat began being recorded (2016). His six pressures Sunday is more than Derrick Brown in 2020 (5) and Brian Burns in 2019 (once 5, once 4). When posed this, the EDGE rusher smiled: “I need more.”
- Interior offensive lineman Robert Hunt was back on the field Wednesday for the first time since tearing his biceps in Week 2 against the Arizona Cardinals. He was working off to the side — not in individual or team drills — and is still on injured reserve. He wore a massive brace on his arm while doing minimal workouts.
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Alex Zietlow
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