The Denver Broncos feel good at 4:3, with a home game against the score at 1:6 Carolina Panthers next. The Broncos are blessed to have clear quarterbacks in rookie first-rounder Bo Nix.

The Panthers? Not so much, although they are just a year removed from drafting quarterback Bryce Young No. 1 overall.

However, it won’t be a (healthy) Young that the Broncos will face on Sunday. Panthers head coach Dave Canales confirmed Monday that veteran Andy Dalton will start against the Broncos.

It’s a very strange decision since the Panthers are clearly not going anywhere in 2024, and The fan base is demanding Young gets the reins back. Make no mistake; Young has looked like a broken quarterback in his two starts this season, but he is the epitome of his namesake and represents a huge investment by the franchise.

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It would have made perfect sense to move on with Dalton if Young had been injured, and the Panthers had some success in the following weeks with the veteran under center. However, this was not the case as Dalton not only failed to win, but also contributed significantly to Carolina’s losses with six interceptions.

This season, Dalton is 1-5 as a starter, completing 66.3% of his passes for 989 yards and seven touchdowns. His 300-yard, three-touchdown performance in Carolina’s only win over the Las Vegas Raiders That must have kept Canales hooked, longing for it and hoping for more.

The Broncos are excited to host either Dalton or Young. Dalton has been sacked seven times in five starts, so he’s doing well to largely avoid pressure, but the Broncos entered Week 7 with the second-most sacks in the NFL and recorded a total of six more QB takedowns in Thursday night’s 33-10 defeat New Orleans Saints.

The last winning season that the 36-year-old Dalton contributed to was in 2015 with the Cincinnati Bengalshis original team. He’s nothing more than a stopgap quarterback now, and while organizational incompetence continues to plague the Panthers, Sean Payton and the Broncos won’t do or say anything to disrupt their Week 8 opponent.

The Broncos are 2-0 against the NFC South this season with two games remaining, including Carolina.

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