Jaycee Horn appreciates the faith, wants to pay it back

When the NFL announced the full regular season schedule last week, it was noticeable that the Panthers, who finished the 2023 season with the league’s worst record, had received no prime time games for the upcoming slate.

Dave Canales and crew took note and moved on but haven’t completely forgotten.

“You got to earn it, you got to earn prime time games,” Canales said Monday of the schedule. “They don’t just throw you on prime time games for no reason.”

This is Canales’ first season as a head coach, and first year with the Panthers. Those that were a part of the 2-15 season, like quarterback Bryce Young, know that it will be a journey back to the games with the most eyes.

“I don’t feel like we have that luxury of looking at games like, oh we want this or ok, this. We got to go out and earn everything,” Young said.

In Week 5, the Panthers will travel to Chicago to face off against the Bears. The matchup will pit the last two Number 1 overall picks, Young and Caleb Williams, against one another. It’s a game that Young knows many have circled, but he’s trying to treat just the same.

“I’ve known Caleb for a really long time,” Young said. “I have a ton of respect for him, for his family. I have nothing but nothing but love for him. I’m super excited for him to be in the league, super excited for his future.”

However, “it’s not basketball,” he continued. “There’s no one-on-one matchups. This is a team sport. It’s going to be the Panthers versus every team.

The league can flex certain games into a prime time spot, beginning in Week 5, and dependent on certain rules surrounding the broadcast partner. The point being, the opportunity is there for the Panthers to earn one of those flexed spots.

“We have to build something, a version of football that we’re proud of and be able to accentuate the strengths and talents of our guys that we have,” Canales said. “And then I think that the world will want to see that at some point, but we got a long way to go and we got to earn those type of opps (opportunities).”