CHARLOTTE — When Bryce Young walked onto the practice field Wednesday, it didn't look any different than any other day he's walked onto the practice field here. Other than him taking scout team reps instead of first team work and Andy Dalton having a press conference instead of him, it was sort of hard to tell the difference.

Of course, things are significantly different since he's the backup this week and Dalton is starting against the Raiders, but Panthers head coach Dave Canales said the team still has a role for Young — and expectations.

"Right back to work," Canales said when asked how Young responded. "Dove into the game plan. We had our conversations in the QB room just going around, talking about reads, talking about what we see from the defense, followed it up with a great day on the field, some fantastic throws, and just got right back to work, which is exactly what I expected him to do."

Young's status is the elephant in the room this week, suddenly the topic of national conversations. But to hear those in that room with the elephant, the conversations were very routine. Young didn't speak to reporters Wednesday (he's expected to talk on Thursday), and Canales was very matter-of-fact when asked multiple questions about Young's future and present.

When asked about speculation that Young could be traded, Canales replied: "It's not something we're really considering."

"We have a great situation," he continued. "With our quarterbacks right now, with guys that have experience. So we love where we're at, and we're all hands on deck. We're focused on playing the Raiders this week."

When asked if the former No. 1 overall pick still had a future here or could be a franchise quarterback, the delivery was the same.

"Absolutely," Canales said. "This is a developmentally-minded program. So the development didn't stop. Every rep he's out there, we're evaluating the whole thing, having and just continuing to push all of our guys, including Bryce, to take that next step every day is a growth, possibility, and opportunity. So we're fully committed to that role.

"He took a lot of the scout reps today. He was in the competition periods with the mixed group. Those are some of the things that he's taken on as a (number) two quarterback. He did a fabulous job today, and he played fast; he found some nice completions all over the field, and those are the things that we ask everyone to do: take your job seriously and attack it, and that's the expectation."

When asked if he was worried about Young's confidence, Canales said: "My concern is the football team. My concern is that we push the whole group to achieve the standard of play, the standard of practice that we're looking for, and the focus is on the Raiders.

"I wish I could answer it differently, but that's truly it; it's all hands on deck, everything we got because we have a really good opponent who just come off of a good road win."

Dalton has been close to Young since they arrived in the spring of 2023, and he acknowledged the awkwardness of the conversations they've had since Monday's change. But he said having been on the other side of the equation and being benched (his Bengals job was usurped when they drafted Joe Burrow, and he lost his Bears starting job to Justin Fields after an injury), he knows how difficult it can be.

"Bryce has been awesome," Dalton said. "It's a tough situation on everybody. Again, I have a different perspective of it because I felt it on both sides. So Bryce and I's friendship goes beyond just, who's the one out there? And it's continued that way."

Likewise, veteran right tackle Taylor Moton said his view of Young didn't change even though the job description did.

"I believe that Bryce is a tremendous quarterback, a tremendous person, a hard worker," Moton said. "You know, I'm not a fortune-teller. I don't know what the future holds for him, but I do know that the way that he works, that type of kid, I know he'll be OK; he'll bounce back on his feet and do whatever he can to be at his best, just like I tried to do myself."