The Panthers made quarterback Bryce Young the first overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft on Thursday night, and Young didn’t know until the Panthers called him to tell him as they were making the pick.
Young told reporters that he never had any assurances that he would be the first overall pick at any time in the pre-draft process.
“Throughout the entire time I never knew where I was going,” Young said. “I know how draft days are. I know anything is possible. The entire time nothing was promised. I didn’t try to keep up with all the things that were going on, I tried to focus on controlling what I can control.”
Asked the precise moment he found out, Young said it was just after the draft began.
“I knew when I saw the Charlotte area code on my phone after the commissioner announced that the Panthers were on the clock,” Young said.
When the Panthers first traded up to the No. 1 overall pick, C.J. Stroud was the favorite to go No. 1. But Young soon became the favorite, and he became an overwhelming betting favorite this week. Young, however, didn’t know for sure until the Panthers were on the clock that he was their new franchise quarterback.
