Carolina linebacker Shaq Thompson is expecting Bryce Young to play winning football, and he doesn’t sound as though he’s making allowances for the Panthers quarterback’s lack of experience.

The former Alabama All-American is preparing for his first NFL season after joining Carolina as the No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft on April 27. Young has two weeks left in his work with Carolina’s veteran players during the Panthers’ offseason program.

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“It’s his first time in the league, but it’s not his first time playing quarterback,” Thompson said on Thursday. “He’s been playing quarterback probably since he was yea high. It’s just understanding the game, understanding formations, understanding how defenses like to show different types of stuff and trying to get that key right on the snap and stuff like that. Probably what he has to do, he’s probably been doing it in college, but it’s a little more showing in defense.

“We’re going to show a lot of stuff, so it’s him trying to figure it out. Just trying to help him out, but other than that, he’s in good hands. I’m just trying to tell him from the defense’s perspective how we think.”

Thompson also indicated he thought Young had what it took to meet his standard.

“That kid is smart,” Thompson said. “He understands football. He understands the playbook. He’s making great throws out there. And he’s just learning how to be a pro, you know? …

“I think he’s going to be great. He has (quarterback) Andy Dalton there, (quarterbacks coach) Josh McCown, all these other quarterback coaches just around him, so it’s going to be an awesome thing to see, and I can’t wait for him to grow and see what he’s got.”

Thompson wasn’t the only Carolina veteran who had good things to say about Young this week.

“I can’t speak highly enough of him,” Panthers left guard Brady Christensen said. “Just the way he carries himself, his leadership, his confidence. I’m just really excited to protect him and see what he can do.”

A third-round selection in the 2021 NFL Draft, Christensen started every game in 2022 for Carolina, which has the five offensive linemen who started the final 11 games of last season back on this year’s roster.

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From the other side of the football, Carolina safety Xavier Woods knows what he likes about Young.

“Just the swagger,” Woods said during a Thursday appearance on NFL Network’s “NFL Total Access.” “Just his persona. How he carries himself, just not only in the weight room, but on the practice field, man. He’s got that silent swagger. You can definitely tell that he knows that he’s top-tier. But he’s humble with it, man.

“Being a first-round draft pick, it’s going to come with a lot of expectations and whatnot, but I’m pretty sure he knows he can carry it. And just the way he carries himself, it shows.”

Carolina is in the final portion of its offseason program, when teams are allowed to conduct up to 10 days of organized team practice activity, usually referred to as OTAs. The Panthers have held six OTA practices and have three more scheduled next week. No contact work is permitted during these practices, but teams can expand their offseason workouts to include 7-on-7, 9-on-7 and 11-on-11 drills.

A mandatory minicamp also can be held during this period, which Carolina has scheduled for June 13-15.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.