CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Fans and media who wanted to catch an early glimpse of Bryce Young arrive at his first Panthers practice weren't early enough.
The No. 1 pick int he NFL Draft arrived to the team's practice facility via golf cart about an hour before rookie minicamp began.
"This is a huge day for me. This is my first day of practice," Young said. "Of course, I wanted to set the tone. I just wanted to get stuff down like we all did."
The Panthers didn't draft the 5-foot-10 Young for his size, and the collection of rookie linemen towered over the 2021 Heisman Trophy winner on Friday.
But Carolina loved everything else about the quarterback and saw examples of it on day one.
Coach Frank Reich said Young took command of the huddle, showing leadership.
At one point he ripped off about six consecutive completions.
But football intelligence is probably the biggest reason the Panthers traded a handful of draft picks and WR DJ Moore to get Young.
Reich, who played the position in the NFL, was clearly impressed by the time Young took the field
"I don't want to overdo it on the first day but he did every little thing right," Reich said. "Threw it with accuracy, knew where guys were supposed to be. Just showed complete command."
Rookie minicamp concludes on Saturday. Carolina's veteran players will arrive on May 23 for the first round of OTA's.
Contact Nick Carboni at ncarboni@wcnc.com and follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.