Bryce Young is in a very unique situation for a former No. 1 overall pick. Typically, after three years, a guy in his position would either have solidified himself as the long-term answer for his team or been benched. With Young, the jury is very much still out. Yet to receive an extension, Young is playing to prove he deserves a commitment from the Carolina Panthers in 2027. Will that motivation translate into fantasy football success?
Should You Draft Bryce Young in Fantasy Football?
Looking at Young’s performance from a 10,000-foot view, there’s nothing to be excited about. He’s been in the NFL for three years and has played 46 games. His best fantasy season was 13.9 points per game. So, that’s it. No reason to discuss it any further. Young is useless in fantasy. Let’s move on. Well…not quite. As any longtime fantasy manager knows, it’s rarely that simple.
Despite the overall package looking poor, Young has had two eerily similar stretches of his career that make you think, “Maybe we have something here.”
Young’s rookie season was a disaster. There’s no sugarcoating that. But his sophomore season wasn’t.
From Weeks 12-18, Young averaged 20.7 PPG. Granted, that’s heavily bolstered by his 36.4-point Week 18 outing in a game that technically doesn’t even count for fantasy. But it’s relevant to this analysis because it showcases his upside. During those seven weeks, Young had games of 23.6, 27.1, and the aforementioned 36.4 fantasy points.
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This late-season surge had fantasy managers at least open to the idea that Young might be a sleeper in 2025 fantasy drafts. So, of course, Young started his third season scoring 12.0 fantasy points or fewer in seven of his first nine. Then, he did it again.
Last year’s late-season surge wasn’t quite as good as the previous one, but Young still averaged 17.3 PPG over his final seven contests. The highlights were his 31.8 points in Week 11 and 22.5 points in Week 13.
So, what keeps happening? Is Young a second half of the season QB? Does he throw caution to the wind as the Panthers typically lose games and play more freely (even though they won the NFC South last season)? The answer is actually quite straightforward, and it’s the same for both seasons.
Here are Young’s fantasy points per game from rushing only:
- 2024 Weeks 1-11 (5 games): 2.46 PPG
- 2024 Weeks 12-18 (7 games): 6.8 PPG
- 2025 Weeks 1-11 (9 games): 1.6 PPG
- 2025 Weeks 12-18 (7 games): 2.6 PPG
Obviously, the increase in 2024 was much larger. However, the fact remains that Young was running more over his final seven games in both seasons. Last year, he averaged 18.8 rushing yards per game from Weeks 12-18 compared to just 9.3 per game from Weeks 1-11. Two years ago, the split was 25.4 vs. 12.6.
Which version of Young will we get in year four?
Young’s Redraft Fantasy Football Value
Let’s not bury the lede here. No one is drafting Young in 1QB leagues. His ADP is QB26. We have him ranked at QB24. This is nothing more than a back-end QB2 in Superflex leagues; the last quarterback you can draft with a reasonable expectation that he starts all 17 games, barring injury.
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As always happens in football, though, players get hurt. Fantasy managers are forced to find replacements from the waiver wire. There are also managers to intentionally look to stream. In either scenario, it’s inevitable that Young’s name will pop up as an option at some point this season due to a favorable matchup. Ultimately, that is where Young’s value lies, as a situational streamer.
Young’s Dynasty Fantasy Football Value
In dynasty, the 2026 season is an inflection point for Young’s career. If he doesn’t prove worthy of an extension after this year, there’s a very strong chance he’s not starting in 2027. What to do with Young depends heavily on how confident you are in his success.
Young’s dynasty value is obviously lower now than it was when he was a rookie, but it hasn’t completely cratered. In superflex, quarterbacks are currency, and Young is a surefire NFL starting quarterback…for now. If that is no longer the case next year, his value will crater, making before the 2026 season starts the best time to cash out if you believe he will fail.
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On the flip side, if Young can take his second-half surge from either of his last two years and play at that level over the full season, we’re talking about a viable QB2 and someone worth rostering. It could go either way.
That uncertainty is why we have Young ranked as QB24 in dynasty. He won’t be QB24 next year. He will either be several spots higher or outside the top 32.
