Bryce Young truthers look foolish after Andy Dalton carves up Raiders in first half

The Carolina Panthers had enough of Bryce Young, as they benched the former No. 1 overall pick just 18 games into his pro career in favor of NFL greybread (redbeard?) Andy Dalton. Their game against the Las Vegas Raiders, fresh off a win against the Baltimore Ravens, would be the ultimate barometer for how bad Young was.

If Dalton went out and executed Dave Canales' offense against a much-improved Raiders defense, those who are insisting Young's poor play was the product of him having no supporting cast around him would be on much fewer form grounds for complaint. If Dalton keeps this up, the Heisman Trophy winner won't see the field anytime soon.

Dalton not only had arguably the best singular half any quarterback has had all season long, but he put together the best individual quarterbacking performance the Panthers have seen in years. He completed 15 of his 22 passes for 212 yards and three touchdowns, one of which each went to Diontae Johnson, Chuba Hubbard, and Adam Thielen.

For the sake of comparison, the former Alabama standout threw for 245 yards and no touchdowns through his first two games of the year with three picks mixed in. In Young's last 11 games, he had just three touchdown passes. It's amazing what Dave Canales' offense can look like when a reliable veteran gets the ball out as quickly.

Panthers look brand new as Andy Dalton thrives following Bryce Young benching

One of the biggest marks against Young was the fact that Carolina's offensive line looks much better this year, and he still struggled to get the ball out to the open receivers. Dalton's football brain has made the whole offense operate smoother as a result.

The Panthers may not be setting the stage for the most high-octane offense ever, but they look competent. Diontae Johnson and Adam Thielen have both made big plays, and Chuba Hubbard has 50 yards on 10 carries to show a more balanced ground game.

Dalton is not going to play like this every week, but the difference between No. 14 running the offense versus what Panthers fans had to sit through with Young is night and day. If the offense keeps this level of play, or even an approximation of this, up for the rest of the season, there's a good chance Young will never reclaim his starting job.