{"id":2085,"date":"2026-06-24T13:35:59","date_gmt":"2026-06-24T13:35:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=2085"},"modified":"2026-06-24T13:35:59","modified_gmt":"2026-06-24T13:35:59","slug":"panthers-mailbag-bryce-youngs-potential-payday-jaelan-phillips-sack-number","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=2085","title":{"rendered":"Panthers mailbag: Bryce Young\u2019s potential payday, Jaelan Phillips\u2019 sack number"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Carolina Panthers are on their summer break until they report to training camp in Charlotte<\/a> on July 22.<\/p>\n

Read more 1 dead, 3 hurt, multiple people detained in neighborhood gunfight, NC sheriff says<\/a><\/p>\n

But worry not: There\u2019s still plenty to talk about.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why The Charlotte Observer has reopened the mailbag and is answering fans\u2019 questions about anything under the sun \u2014 including pressure stats, Bryce Young and some early training camp math.<\/p>\n

Check those questions out below, with accompanying answers from Panthers reporter Alex Zietlow.<\/p>\n

Via email, David asks:<\/b> While a winning season is needed following a playoff appearance, what statistical benchmark would make 2026 a success for Bryce Young? His futures odds are suggesting a 3,000-yard and 20-touchdown season, which to me is a little low for a new QB contract.<\/p>\n

Answer:<\/b> Fair question, David. The short answer is … well … you sort of beat me to it. If Young can lead the Panthers to a winning season \u2014 and importantly, a second consecutive playoff appearance \u2014 it\u2019d be hard to imagine 2026 isn\u2019t deemed \u201csuccessful\u201d for him. No matter what people say, NFL front offices consider \u201cwins\u201d as QB stats. It\u2019s probably the most powerful QB stat, too, when it comes to contracts.<\/p>\n

But let\u2019s dive a little deeper for the sake of discussing what might make Young worthy of a big payday ahead of 2027.<\/p>\n

Through three seasons in the league, Young is 14-31. His regular-season 17-game averages<\/a> are nothing to overlook. According to Pro Football Reference, those \u201cseason-long\u201d averages: 3,064 passing yards, 18 touchdowns, 11 interceptions. And several of the unflattering stats have tapered off a ton this last year, including sacks taken (27 in 2025, down from 62 in 2023).<\/p>\n

Now, let\u2019s say he takes another jump in 2026. What would a \u201csuccess\u201d look like? What ideally would it look like individually for Young to earn the right to stay in Carolina for the long haul?<\/p>\n

To such a series of questions, I offer you two examples:<\/p>\n

Yes, every front office decision is different, and yes, every decision comes with different contexts. There\u2019s no formula for who gets what. But if Purdy and Lawrence\u2019s \u201ccontract-year\u201d seasons offer a blueprint for Young, he\u2019s going to need to add 800 more passing yards than he\u2019s ever had in a single year to earn the big contract payday he\u2019s looking for. It wouldn\u2019t hurt for him to win a playoff game or two, either.<\/p>\n

Via email, Michael asks:<\/b> Should there be a sack number goal for Jaelan Phillips, or are sack numbers overrated?<\/p>\n

Answer:<\/b> Sack numbers are not overrated. Far from it. Jaelan Phillips himself will tell you that, and he\u2019ll add that he knows he\u2019s capable of a double-digit sack season. I think 10 sacks in 2026 \u2014 considering the four-year, $120 million deal he signed in free agency \u2014 is a reasonable goal. That\u2019s certainly what Phillips\u2019 peers are making; Phillips, after all, is now a Top 10-paid (APY) EDGE rusher in the NFL<\/a>, according to Over The Cap.<\/p>\n

But what\u2019s more important, and what gets at the heart of your question, is the Panthers\u2019 pressure prowess as a whole.<\/p>\n

Carolina finished the 2025 regular season 27th in sack percentage (5.34%) and tied-for-30th in team sacks with 30. If Phillips can not only get his due but also unlock others in the process \u2014 like second-year EDGE rusher Nic Scourton and fresh-off-back-surgery Pat Jones \u2014 then the Panthers might be in business.<\/p>\n

Read more North Carolina has rattlesnakes. See how to ID the one you\u2019d most likely spot<\/a><\/p>\n

Phillips should open up one-on-one opportunities for both of those players. Scourton, for example, was double-teamed on 34.6% of his pass rushes<\/a>, according to Pro Football Focus. Phillips was doubled about that same amount in Philly and Miami last season, and those squads had 42 and 39 team sacks, respectively.<\/p>\n

So sack number for Phillips? Sure, make it 10. Why not? But the big deal is that he should open up opportunities for others and lift the Panthers\u2019 pressure stats across the board.<\/p>\n

Via X, Greg asks:<\/b> Curious on your thoughts on how many wide receivers and running backs they keep on the 53-man roster.<\/p>\n

Answer:<\/b> Training camp math has already begun! Woo-hoo! I\u2019m going to be annoying here and say it\u2019s a little too early to make such a prediction with certainty. But for now, I\u2019ll predict the team keeps seven receivers and three running backs on the initial 53-man roster from training camp, as they have the two previous years under head coach Dave Canales.<\/p>\n

Now, that might shift a bit because of various special teams considerations. Will they keep Brycen Tremayne because of his special teams acumen and blocking prowess as a wideout? Or will they opt to keep an extra tight end in Feleipe Franks for the same reasons?<\/p>\n

What about at running back: Do they keep four because they want to see how AJ Dillon can impact the team in the short-yardage<\/a> and give Trevor Etienne another season of pretty much exclusively being a punt\/kick returner?<\/p>\n

These are all worthy questions that might impact my prediction closer to cut-down day in before Week 1. But for now, let\u2019s just stay consistent with history: seven wideouts, three running backs.<\/p>\n

Via email, Robert asked (prior to the news that the NFL would not host a supplemental draft):<\/b> I assume the Panthers don\u2019t have an interest in Brendan Sorsby. But at some point do you take a flyer? Would the Panthers put a silent bid in for a fourth- or fifth-round pick?<\/p>\n

Answer:<\/b> I had a long answer at the ready to this query before the news broke on Tuesday afternoon that the NFL would not host a supplemental draft after all<\/a>. There\u2019s no use rehashing all of it because Sorsby won\u2019t be able to play in the NFL this year.<\/p>\n

But a quick word on it nonetheless:<\/p>\n

Adding Sorsby to a roster would come with a lot of baggage after admitting that he bet on his own college football team in 2022. He\u2019s the center of a very public, very loud, very one-sided controversy \u2014 one that Big 12 officials, federal judges and fans everywhere have weighed in on.<\/p>\n

Putting in a bid for Sorsby would be diametrically opposed to the preachings of Canales \u2014 who has spent this offseason building a QB room that is meant to elevate Young<\/a>. The Panthers need to collect some data on Young, after all, and see if he\u2019s worth the $50 million average-per-year salary that he could conceivably be up for after his fifth-year option is up in 2027. Why shift a delicate balance? Why needlessly rock a boat in this way?<\/p>\n

The Panthers have never taken anyone in any supplemental draft before. Still haven\u2019t. And they still wouldn\u2019t have \u2014 even if one was held later this summer.<\/p>\n

Read more What are the best specialty pizzas in Charlotte? Tell us your favorites<\/a><\/p>\n

This story was originally published June 24, 2026 at 6:00 AM.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Carolina Panthers fans asked The Charlotte Observer many questions. 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