Bryce Young is getting the support of some fellow athletes, including one of basketball’s biggest names.
Young was benched by the Panthers following a disastrous 0-2 start to the season after failing to throw a touchdown — with three interceptions — in an inauspicious beginning to his second year in the NFL.
Though the 2023 No. 1 overall pick out of Alabama has faced plenty of criticism for his on-field play, he is getting some love from the likes of LeBron James and former No. 2 NFL draft pick Ryan Leaf.
James, the Lakers star and former No. 1 draft pick himself, took to X on Tuesday night and told Young that he should stay positive and that it’s not all his fault for the struggles on the field.
“Bryce Young hold ya head Young!!” James wrote. “Rooting for you and know this ain’t on you! Continue to put the work in and it shall prevail!”
On the football side, Leaf, who was taken second overall by the Chargers in 1998, said it’s more on the Panthers as an organization for not supporting Young better in his first two years as a pro.
“They screwed this thing up from the get-go, though. I mean, this organization is horrible,” Leaf told TMZ on Tuesday.
“This organization has done nothing to try to help and develop a player that has so much expectation on him. And so, I laid this at the feet of the organization completely.”
Leaf had similarly high expectations in the NFL but struggled to live up to them, playing games in just three NFL seasons before his time in the league was over.
The former San Diego QB said he can relate to how Young is probably feeling as he gets replaced as the starter by Andy Dalton.
“No one believes in him and no one has his back. And I know what that feels like,” Leaf told TMZ. “You don’t want to go into the office. You don’t want to be around anybody. Football seems so toxic to you because you’ve always had that. You’ve always had success.
“And you’ve always been the guy that everybody loved to lift up and follow and everything like that.”