The talk of the town regarding former Alabama quarterback Bryce Young’s potential in the NFL has centered on his size.
Young attended the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine, but he did not throw the football. He was at the least measured at the combine, and he was officially listed at 5-foot-10 1/8 and weighed 204 pounds.
Young, who is deemed to be the favorite to be selected by the Carolina Panthers with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, has seemingly divided general managers across the NFL because of concerns regarding his size. However, former Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly does not see much cause for concern with Young’s stature.
“That size stuff is great—but if that ball’s coming out fast, it doesn’t matter,” Kuechly said during a recent appearance on WFNZ’s “Mac & Bone” show. “Drew [Brees] wasn’t a huge quarterback, but he was strongly built. But you could never touch him. You’d get close to him, the ball would be out. You’d get close to him, the ball would be out. And then he never took clean shots.
“Like, that’s the other thing, too. These quarterbacks—yeah, they’re gonna get hit, they’re gonna get bumped. But the good ones know—No. 1: how to get the ball out, No. 2: how to navigate the pocket, and No. 3: they know how to not get hit clean.”
As Kuechly touched on, Drew Brees’ size did not pose much of a problem for him over his run in the NFL. Brees went on to enjoy a 20-year career in the NFL where he shattered a multitude of passing records.
Panthers head coach Frank Reich also believes that Young has what it takes to silence concerns regarding his size.
“Yes, it is a concern,” Reich said during a press conference at the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine. “Look at Drew Brees, look at Russell Wilson. Are there very many quarterbacks his size that are high-high picks? No, they’re not. But there are exceptions to that. There’s good reasons that there’s exceptions to that.
“Listen, everything I’ve seen, every positive thing that’s been said about Bryce Young, he’s earned and seems warranted. I think that discussion of where he’s at and how everyone is viewing him right now is very warranted. He’s earned that right by how he’s played.”
Young is coming off of a three-season run at Alabama where he tallied 80 touchdown passes.
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