Panthers QB Bryce Young makes a couple of highlight throws with notable names sidelined

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During what felt like the hottest practice of training camp so far this year, Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young added to the sizzle of his summer highlight reel with a pair of impressive throws during team drills Saturday.

Young, with the team in shells and shorts, threaded a laser through traffic in 11-on-11 team drills. The ball sliced through the defense and found slot receiver Adam Thielen over the middle for about a 15-yard gain. Thielen made an impressive snag with defenders all around him.

Later, Young lofted a hovering shot to the end zone for wide receiver Diontae Johnson in red-zone team drills. The ball hit Johnson in the back of the end zone for a touchdown. Young saw Johnson streaking behind the defense in the end zone and simply floated the ball to his receiver.

Young has had a solid summer. While he isn’t dazzling with an onslaught of deep balls or looking like a human joystick in the pocket, he is effectively moving the ball and finding his targets.

With Young not participating in the preseason-opening loss to the New England Patriots, his summer evaluation — so far — has come with the defense unable to hit him in practice. Young’s upside is hard to measure after an abysmal situation sunk him last year during his rookie campaign. But, so far, during his first training camp with Dave Canales, the quarterback has been fine, and at times, has looked like the elusive playmaker who won a Heisman trophy at Alabama.

Still, practice is practice. And Young’s future will be largely dictated by what he does in his second year of his NFL career.

Practice has been positive, but it’s ultimately not the proof that Panthers fans crave. Carolina is less than a month away from when stuff will really count.

Injuries continue to mount

The Panthers added to their injured masses on Thursday in the loss to the Patriots.

Backup center Cade Mays is expected to miss “a couple of weeks” with an AC sprain in his shoulder, according to Canales. Sixth-round pick, defensive end Jaden Crumedy, will miss time with a high-ankle sprain. Badara Traore, who played both tackle spots on Thursday, is dealing with a knee injury, though Canales said there is no structural damage.

Wide receiver Deven Thompkins (undisclosed) and tight end Jacob Hollister (undisclosed) didn’t take part in drills Saturday, either.

Tight ends Tommy Tremble (hamstring) and Ian Thomas (calf), linebacker Shaq Thompson (hamstring), defensive back Sam Franklin (foot), pass rusher Cam Gill (undisclosed), defensive lineman LaBryan Ray (undisclosed), wide receiver Xavier Legette (foot) and quarterback Andy Dalton (quad) remained sidelined.

Running back Jonathon Brooks (ACL) remains on the active/non-football injury (NFI) list. Offensive tackle Yosh Nijman (leg) and outside linebackers D.J. Wonnum (quad) and Amare Barno (ACL) remain on the active/physically unable to perform (PUP) list.

Play of the day: Jack Plummer delivers a dime

After having a rough go in the preseason opener against New England, rookie quarterback Jack Plummer bounced back nicely in his next practice.

During a 7-on-7 drill, Plummer floated a beautiful rainbow ball — roughly 40 to 45 yards down the field — to wide receiver David Moore.

Plummer placed the ball right in front of Moore on a seam route, and got it to the receiver where only he could grab it against tight coverage from veteran cornerback Anthony Brown. Moore snatched the ball with Brown trailing by a step or two and took it to the end zone for a touchdown.

Following the play, Young and Plummer had a leaping celebration as the fans in attendance cheered the big play.

The throw was arguably a top-five pass of camp and easily the best toss of Plummer’s summer so far. He is competing with Jake Luton for the third QB job.

Canales addresses awkward end to Delta flight

The Panthers’ chartered Delta flight home from New England on Friday morning ended in unusual fashion. Part of the aircraft went off the taxiway, the airline confirmed to The Observer.

But according to Canales, the landing wasn’t much of an issue.

“Really, it was a clean, safe landing,” Canales said. “We were on the ground, and then, you know, as we were taxiing, the plane was under control — we felt a little jolt — and the pilot informed us that there was something going on, that they were going to have to bring people out to evaluate. I promptly went to sleep, and was like, ‘I know these things from flying commercial, and it might take some time,’ so I took a little nap, and next thing you know, I’m kind of getting jolted and we hopped on buses and we made it to our cars safely.

“For me, there’s only one way to grade landings, and that’s safely. And so that’s a pass/fail deal, and he passed it with flying colors and the rest of it we’ll kind of deal with.”

There were 188 passengers on the plane. According to a team spokesperson, the players and coaches onboard were not injured.

Quick hits

▪ The Panthers hosted the Pop Warner 11U Police Activities League (PAL) Panthers for a “joint” training camp practice on Saturday. The PAL players warmed up alongside the team and participated in an intrasquad scrimmage on the team’s practice field following the workout.

▪ Tight end Jordan Matthews, a standout of the preseason opener, was on the field roughly an hour before practice started. He has consistently been the first player at practice throughout camp. He gets in work for several minutes before some of his teammates even arrive.

▪ Austin Corbett, who has made the switch from right guard to center, had a poor snap in team drills on Saturday. Corbett has mostly been fine with that element of the job, but occasionally, he’s faltered with getting the ball to Young from a shotgun setting. That’ll be worth monitoring if the starters play in the preseason.

▪ With Mays and Troare sidelined, the Panthers worked out four lineman on Saturday after practice. Former Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants center/guard Jack Anderson was among the bunch.

▪ The team signed defensive end Jayden Peevy ahead of the workout. Peevy spent time on the Panthers’ practice squad last season, so he is familiar with defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero’s system.

▪ Guard Nash Jensen missed Thursday’s preseason matchup due to the birth of his son, Colby. Following the birth of the baby boy, Jensen returned to practice on Saturday.

▪ Long snapper JJ Jansen had a nice tackle on a punt coverage against the Patriots. On Saturday, he continued his mid-practice chore of throwing for the defensive backs. He’s actually got a solid arm, if you were wondering.

▪ While Tremble and Legette didn’t take part in drills with teammates, both spent time catching passes off to the side during the workout.

▪ Follow Observer reporters Mike Kaye (@mike_e_kaye) and Alex Zietlow (@alexzietlow05), and columnist Scott Fowler (@scott_fowler), on X, formerly known as Twitter, for the Panthers’ latest news and highlights. The Panthers’ next practice is at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday.