Bryce Young was the number one overall selection in the NFL Draft. That comes with a hefty price tag and Young signed with the Carolina Panthers on a four-year, fully guaranteed $37.95 contract, which included a $24.6 million signing bonus. He has money now, but that wasn't always the case.
For a while, college athletes like Young struggled to find time to make money. In Young's case, he resorted to food delivery to earn some cash. He said in a press conference:
“I did that for a while. I did from when I got here and got my like got my feet on the ground as far as when I first got there, I didn't really I was just, you know, learning the playbook and everything. I guess… I was driving for door dash and honestly, I would have like a mask going in the evening and then I would only really, like, take the drop it at my door orders, so for the most part, I didn't really get I never really got recognized for anything. But yeah, I mean, you know this was before NIL."
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Young was a freshman at Alabama and not as recognizable as he is now. When he drove for DoorDash, not many customers ever realized they were being delivered to by a future first overall NFL selection.
Bryce Young Rookie of the Year odds
Bryce Young was the first overall selection at the NFL Draft, which means that the Carolina Panthers believe he was arguably the best prospect. Positional importance matters, but they believe he will be a star.
However, right now, he's not the favorite to win Rookie of the Year. That would be Bijan Robinson of the Atlanta Falcons:
- Robinson, +250
- Young, +400
- Anthony Richardson, +700
- Jahmyr Gibbs, +800
- CJ Stroud, +850
- Jaxon Smith-Njigba, +1200
Despite not being the favorite, the new Panthers starter has a great chance of securing the award and proving the team right in their decision to trade up and select him.
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