Brian Answers: Answering questions with arms wide open

Hello CSR! Welcome to Brian Answers, part two of your weekly Panthers fan mailbag for everyone! We got a lot of questions this week, and you all really went off in the comments about some off-topic music stuff. I love it. Let’s dive right in to all your questions!

Bruce Guild: Going out on a limb with some preseason guesses on who will be selected to this years Pro Bowl team.

Horn, Brown, and yes Bryce Young

Who am I missing?

What percentage would you say BY has a chance at the selection?

The Pro Bowl is a very fickle beast. These days there’s so many alternates that get named and players dipping out in the playoffs that it no longer carries the same distinction it did 15ish years ago. But I will give it a whirl.

I could see Derrick Brown and Jaycee Horn being named to the Pro Bowl even if our worst fears are realized and the Panthers suck again in 2025. I’d give Bryce Young a 35% chance of being selected to the Pro Bowl on the first ballot, though he could make it as an alternate, if we’re just going off of what he accomplished in 2024. If he continues to make significant strides forward, he might make it as the 3rd guy on the first round of ballots.

Robert Hunt, Taylor Moton, and Chuba Hubbard could also make it if the Panthers find themselves in playoff territory. It's a shame Pro Bowl selections often come based on the success of the team around them.

@WTMealey: Is it me or is the DM the GM relationship with Canales have a different feel than Hurney/Fox or Gettleman/Rivera? Like they seem to genuinely like each other where in other eras it seemed maybe there was some respect, but mostly they just tolerated each other? In fact lets include Tillis and the trio seems to all honor each others expertise and agree philosophically how to build a long term successful franchise.

Compare this iteration to the others please.

No, it isn’t just you. This iteration of the Panthers coaching/front office is very different. Marty Hurney and John Fox were a much older guard, and Ron Rivera came in as the Panthers head coach with Hurney still in power as GM. Dave Gettleman came along as GM, but he never got a chance to hire someone other than Rivera as his head coach. I don’t know how much that would have mattered, as his GM career didn’t exactly skyrocket after going elsewhere.

I think this iteration of the Panthers GM/Head Coaching group is different in that its the first time in a long while the Panthers started from the foundation and built it up, and the owner didn’t get involved and make any sweeping decisions. If you all remember, when Scott Fitterer was fired, and then the Panthers decided to hire from within and promote Dan Morgan to General Manager, I preached to be patient. That isn’t to say...