The Carolina Panthers shook up the NFL on Monday by benching 2023 No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young just two games into his second season. It's not an altogether unsurprising development considering the gargantuan struggles of the young quarterback, who completed just 59% of his throws in a 2-16 stretch as the starter. It has potentially massive ripple effects for the Panthers' long-term rebuild, however, as new coach Dave Canales was seemingly hired this offseason for the primary purpose of aiding Young.
If you're clinging to Young's upside, or still intrigued by the Alabama product's intangibles, you might be wondering if there's any precedent for a first-round quarterback actually benefiting from a benching. And, truth be told, the pickings are slim in that category. If a premium investment at the position bottoms out, it typically doesn't bode well for the team or the player down the road; damage done is damage done.
These few high-profile first-rounders defied that trend by reaching new heights after demotion:
Tua Tagovailoa
Drafted: 2020 (No. 5 overall) | Benched: November 2020
Alabama's starter two seasons prior to Young, Tagovailoa had a roller-coaster of a rookie season under coach Brian Flores, replacing veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick in Week 6, earning the full-time starting gig and then returning to the bench in the fourth quarter of Week 11. He would rise and fall on the depth chart once more that year, only to rejuvenate his career under new coach Mike McDaniel two years later, drawing MVP consideration for a 2022 breakout. Multiple head injuries have since marred Tagovailoa's availability, but when healthy, he's been one of the game's most productive precision throwers.
Sam Darnold
Drafted: 2018 (No. 3 overall) | Benched: October 2021
We might be jumping the gun by suggesting Darnold is "flourishing," but he's certainly taken major strides to start 2024, helping the Minnesota Vikings to a surprising 2-0 start as the decisive veteran atop Kevin O'Connell's offense. It was a long road to this point, with Darnold lasting just two injury- and turnover-riddled seasons with the New York Jets to start his career, then going in and out of the lineup with the Carolina Panthers during the 2021-2022 seasons, during which the club added both Cam Newton and Baker Mayfield to claim his job. In his case, then, literal changes of scenery aided in his growth.
Jared Goff
Drafted: 2016 (No. 1 overall) | Benched: January 2021
Technically speaking, Goff was never "demoted" as the Los Angeles Rams' starter to close the 2020 campaign, his fifth with the franchise, but head coach Sean McVay opted to start backup John Wolford in a must-win Week 17 matchup even before assessing Goff's recovery from a late-year injury. Had Wolford stayed healthy, he would've also been the Rams' signal-caller for the playoffs, reports indicated at the time. Goff was not long for L.A. by that point, traded to the Detroit Lions in the Matthew Stafford deal the following offseason, though he's since restored his reputation as a playoff-caliber starter in Motown.
Alex Smith
Drafted: 2005 (No. 1 overall) | Benched: November 2012
Smith had been a long-time veteran of the 49ers by the time Jim Harbaugh made the bold move to sit him for up-and-coming dual threat Colin Kaepernick late in 2012. Harbaugh's gamble paid off, with San Francisco ultimately advancing to the Super Bowl, but it also enabled Smith to revive his career with the Kansas City Chiefs, who acquired him as the veteran starter for new coach Andy Reid in 2013. Smith would, of course, also give way to Patrick Mahomes down the road, but not before making three playoff runs and briefly drawing MVP consideration as Kansas City's starter.
Donovan McNabb
Drafted: 1999 (No. 2 overall) | Benched: November 2008
McNabb had already etched himself into the Philadelphia Eagles' record books by the time Andy Reid benched him during an ugly Week 12 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in 2008. The repeat Pro Bowler is still one of the most accomplished quarterbacks in team history. Still, his sudden late-year demotion seemingly sparked one of the finest stretches of his Eagles tenure, as he returned days later with a Thanksgiving Day rout of the Arizona Cardinals and went on to guide Philly to the NFC Championship. In the end, McNabb would only play one more season in town, however, before being traded.
Steve Young
Drafted: 1984 (No. 1 overall)* | Benched: October 1994
The Hall of Famer was just hitting his stride as one of the NFL's elite quarterbacks in the 1990s, years after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers made him the top pick in the Supplemental Draft, ultimately luring him from the then-upstart USFL. He was reportedly irate over the San Francisco 49ers benching him late in a blowout loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in 1994, but went on to guide 10 straight victories after the sidelining, ultimately leading San Francisco to a win in Super Bowl XXIX, in which he was named MVP.
* Young was selected in the NFL's Supplemental Draft.