Panthers vs. Seahawks NFL Week 3 odds, trends: Spread rises with Andy Dalton likely starting at quarterback, Bryce Young not practicing

The introduction to the NFL has not gone smoothly for Carolina Panthers quarterback and No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young. His 66.6 QB rating is only better than Zach Wilson's 53.3. One concern about Young from scouts? His rather small size might hinder him from being able to see over his offensive line, which could lead to potential injuries. The former Heisman Trophy winner hurt his ankle in Monday's loss against New Orleans and could be sidelined Sunday in Seattle. Andy Dalton seems likely to get his first Panthers start. That has pushed the spread from a SportsLine consensus open of Seahawks -4.5 to -6.5.

It's never ideal for a quarterback to miss practice time during the week. But it's even worse for Young, who hasn't practiced, because it's a short week with the Monday night game and Thursday is generally when coaches install the game plan for Sunday. The team should wait until Friday to officially declare Young's status. He has looked by far the worst of the three rookie QB starters in the early going (Indianapolis' Anthony Richardson and Houston's C.J. Stroud being the other two). Young has completed just 59.2% of his passes for 299 yards, two touchdowns and two picks.Those 299 yards are the NFL's fewest. 

The last time Carolina used a No. 1 overall pick on a QB and started him Week 1 was in 2011 with Cam Newton. He had 854 passing yards in his first two starts, the most through two career games in NFL history. Young is the first player with at least 70 attempts and less than 300 passing yards through his team's first two games of a season since Mark Malone in 1986.

To be fair to Young, his offensive line is easily among the league's worst, and the receiving corps leaves much to be desired. The Panthers are tied for the fewest points in the NFL this season (27) and went 18 straight drives without a TD between TDs in the first quarter of Week 1 and the fourth quarter of Week 2. Seattle, though, is the only team to allow at least 30 points in both games.

The veteran Dalton signed a two-year, $11 million contract with $8 million guaranteed this offseason knowing he would be the No. 2 in Carolina. The signing happened after the Panthers moved up to No. 1 in the draft via trade with Chicago.

Dalton is on his fourth team in as many years after spending his first nine seasons with the Bengals. In 14 games as the Saints' starter in 2022, Dalton threw for 2,871 yards, 18 touchdowns and nine interceptions with a 6-8 record. Overall as a starter, Dalton is 83-77-2, but most of his success came early in his career in Cincinnati. He's 3-1 against Seattle.

The Seahawks had faced and beaten top-pick quarterbacks in each of the first two weeks in the Rams' Matthew Stafford and Lions' Jared Goff – who of course were traded for each other a few years ago. Seattle was set to be only the ninth team since 1950 to face a No. 1 overall pick QB in the first three games of a season.

While Carolina is 0-2, the rest of the NFC South is 6-0. The Panthers also will be missing their defensive leader in linebacker Shaq Thompson, who is likely done for the season with a broken fibula. He has the fourth-most tackles (717) in Panthers history and is one of eight active NFL players with 100+ tackles in each of the previous four seasons. Several other Carolina players are banged up as well. 

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