BREAKING: Panthers sign QB Kenny Pickett

[X-Clown]

20 hours ago, SmokinwithWilly said:

I guess a better question would be, if Jacoby Brisset was available and willing to sign here for the same amount as KP, do you think the Panthers would have signed him?

3366/23/8  94.1 QB rating in 25'.

 

I would hope so. But that's purely hypothetical, he's still under contract with AZ and is likely going to be their starter. They gave Minshew 8.5 to be his backup.

[frankw]

On 3/10/2026 at 10:50 AM, SmokinwithWilly said:

I guess a better question would be, if Jacoby Brisset was available and willing to sign here for the same amount as KP, do you think the Panthers would have signed him?

3366/23/8  94.1 QB rating in 25'.

I don't, judging by the way the leadership has acted. Nothing they do says we're trying to get better. It all says we're trying to keep Bryce from feeling pressured.

That's what I see and therein lies my problem. 

Brissett is intriguing. But he'll be 34 near the end of this upcoming season and that cliff for aging QB's shows up quick fast and in a hurry.

[SmokinwithWilly]

5 minutes ago, frankw said:

Brissett is intriguing. But he'll be 34 near the end of this upcoming season and that cliff for aging QB's shows up quick fast and in a hurry.

The question was really meant to make one consider the motivations of the FO. Would you bring in another QB at 4m per season who had a statistically better season than Bryce as a "backup" or would they allow an open competition? I question the reasons behind signing Pickett. Is it about improving the team or protecting Bryce from competition. 

Edited Wednesday at 03:47 PM by SmokinwithWilly

[frankw]

3 minutes ago, SmokinwithWilly said:

The question was really meant to make one consider the motivations of the FO. Would you bring in another QB at 4m per season who had a statistically better season than Bryce as a "backup" or would they allow an open competition? I question the reasons behind signing Pickett. Is it about improving the team or protecting Bryce from competition. 

They are absolutely still protecting Bryce. They are giving him one last shot before they close the door. I mean this kid has started all three of his first seasons in the league playing like one of the worst QB's in Panthers history. The issue is you can't rule out the Panthers decision makers seeing just enough from him to convince themselves he's worth an extension. If he needs to be carried in any way shape or form across the season for us to be competitive then he has to go.

[Jackie Lee]

12 minutes ago, frankw said:

They are absolutely still protecting Bryce. They are giving him one last shot before they close the door. I mean this kid has started all three of his first seasons in the league playing like one of the worst QB's in Panthers history. The issue is you can't rule out the Panthers decision makers seeing just enough from him to convince themselves he's worth an extension. If he needs to be carried in any way shape or form across the season for us to be competitive then he has to go.

I think maybe they are finally starting to realize that the fans don't give a poo about how bad that trade was anymore and just want a good team? All that matters is winning. Pickett has more desire to play than Dalton and he can throw a better deep ball than Bryce and actually QB sneak, will light a fire under BY's butt. Hopefully they draft a day 3 guy or sign a udfa as well and have an actual training camp with quality reps for the whole room instead of coddling the guy that shouldn't need any more excuses at this point. 

[frankw]

1 minute ago, Jackie Lee said:

I think maybe they are finally starting to realize that the fans don't give a poo about how bad that trade was anymore and just want a good team? All that matters is winning. Pickett has more desire to play than Dalton and he can throw a better deep ball than Bryce and actually QB sneak, will light a fire under BY's butt. Hopefully they draft a day 3 guy or sign a udfa as well and have an actual training camp with quality reps for the whole room instead of coddling the guy that shouldn't need any more excuses at this point. 

I'm with you. We just have to wait and see how it unfolds.

[MrBubba]

https://x.com/i/status/2031784017863798840

 

[ThPantherFan]

On 3/10/2026 at 7:03 PM, SmokinwithWilly said:

How? 3 shots and i lost 24 hours. 

We made a batch in the dorm room of purple GD.  My room mate had never even had a beer in his life.  We gave him a big glass.  He went to the girls dorm and.......I better not say the rest.  You know what I mean. 

[ThPantherFan]

On 3/10/2026 at 5:55 PM, HeelsPanthersCanes said:

Then you weren't doing it right, haha.

College trashcan punch was the devil!!!! 

Yes it was.  We called it Purple GD

[WUnderhill]

So if I’m getting this right, the FO does not think Bryce Young could win an open competition with basically anybody except Kenny Pickett or Andy Dalton,  thinks his ego is so flimsy that they wouldn’t dare have any talent on the roster behind him anyways (I guess it’s a good thing he’s never been benched for poor play with that frail ego…), but ALSO if he has just a mediocre season will give him the bag just because. Makes total sense.

[mrcompletely11]

5 minutes ago, WUnderhill said:

So if I’m getting this right, the FO does not think Bryce Young could win an open competition with basically anybody except Kenny Pickett or Andy Dalton,  thinks his ego is so flimsy that they wouldn’t dare have any talent on the roster behind him anyways (I guess it’s a good thing he’s never been benched for poor play with that frail ego…), but ALSO if he has just a mediocre season will give him the bag just because. Makes total sense.

I remember day drinking

[SmokinwithWilly]

20 hours ago, WUnderhill said:

So if I’m getting this right, the FO does not think Bryce Young could win an open competition with basically anybody except Kenny Pickett or Andy Dalton,  thinks his ego is so flimsy that they wouldn’t dare have any talent on the roster behind him anyways (I guess it’s a good thing he’s never been benched for poor play with that frail ego…), but ALSO if he has just a mediocre season will give him the bag just because. Makes total sense.

I don't think it's about Bryce's ego. I think it's about Tepper's. Bryce was Tepper's draft pick. Everything that's been done has been to protect the image. 

New HC with a shiny contract fired after he loses interest immediately after he supposedly drafted his guy. He can't make an offense for him because he's the QB that fits his style of offense.

Bryce's rookie season is one of the worst in history. It was obvious he wasn't ready. He was named starter without any real camp competition. No real preseason reps. Coach keeps playing him despite terrible play. 

A new coach and GM are hired on the condition that Bryce is the guy. No searching for a new QB. It's Bryce or else. 

Bryce is benched year 2 for multiple games, replaced by Dalton who stunk it up proving he's washed up, then Bryce comes back in after Dalton injures his thumb and finishes the season. Dalton's contract is up, plenty of younger, higher upside FAs available. Dalton is brought back 2 years guaranteed as a "mentor".

Jack Plummer, so bad in 24', brought back to camp in 25' and lo and behold, he's still terrible and has no business being on a field. 

Other QBs brought in, the most recognizable being Hooker. All those brought in so bad even the PS can't hold them. 

And now, after 3 years of bottom tier QB performance, with Dan saying we need to improve our QB room, we bring in a QB that's not passed for over 2500 yards in either of his 2 seasons as a starter, before he's benched and sent to the life of being a backup. 

The common denominator in all of this is there's never been any real competition here, even when it was justified. After last year, it's debatable if he's starting QB material. Good moments and horrific moments. From one minute to the next, you don't know what you're gonna get. 

So if you ask yourself why some of us feel bringing in KP is a joke, it's because it looks how it's always looked. That everything being done is to prove that David Tepper was right when he made the choice to draft Bryce and everything done since has been to protect that decision. Bringing in another QB with even the potential to challenge Bryce was always out of the question.