Bryce Young watched from the sideline as Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams — the quarterback who will forever be linked to Young in NFL lore — faced third-and-13 late in the third quarter.
A wired headset in his left ear, Young paced the sideline, as his Carolina Panthers aimed to muster a comeback from a 20-points-and-counting hole.
During his team’s offensive moments, he was taking mental reps. During defensive moments like this, he was reviewing the strategy he had been tasked with imitating at practices that week as quarterback of the scout team.