In Cam Newton’s first NFL game, the former Auburn All-American passed for 422 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another score.

In Bryce Young’s first NFL game, the former Alabama All-American passed for 146 yards and one touchdown.

The quarterbacks kicked off their careers 12 years apart – Newton in 2011 and Young in 2023 — after being chosen No. 1 in the NFL Draft by the Carolina Panthers.

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“I believe in Bryce, but I think you have to raise him with care,” Newton said during an appearance this week on the “KJ All Day with KJ Wright” podcast. “I think a person like Bryce could be scarred just like any other quarterback could be scarred if thrown to the wolves too early. …

“We all know anytime you’re the first pick that means you’re going to a (expletive) team. I went through it, Peyton Manning went through it, all the No. 1 picks went through it. And this day and age, it’s about who and what can you do right now. But I think when you’re dealing with a talent like Bryce Young, it’s the long tenure rather than right-now success.”

Even though Carolina posted a 2-14 record the season before the Panthers drafted Newton, the 2010 Heisman Trophy winner thinks he landed in a better situation than the 2021 Heisman Trophy winner. Carolina had a 7-10 record last season.

In Newton’s rookie season, the Panthers had a pair of former 1,000-yard running backs in Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams, and wide receiver Steve Smith already had been a four-time Pro Bowler and a two-time first-team All-Pro.

Newton said Young doesn’t have enough talent around him to succeed this season.

“I see the receiver skill set, yes,” Newton said. “You see (Adam) Thielen, you see (DJ) Chark, you see the tight end there. But from top to bottom, for him, it’s not set up for him to be successful, especially not his rookie year, in my honest opinion. Everything that Carolina is building, will they get to that point? Yes, but right now throwing him into the wolves and expecting instant success, that’s not the quarterback position, unfortunately.

“What I will say is it’s going to take a season of him kind of seeing the preparation, seeing the tempo of the game, seeing in-game adjustments at its finest, and, shucks, you take anybody – I mean look at Patrick Mahomes. If Patrick Mahomes had been an instant starter, would he have had the success that he’s had now? I would beg to differ, to say: Yo, I don’t think he would. Having a guy like Alex Smith to play in front of him, building a defense, building a skill set around him, special teams and things like that, putting him in the best situation possible similar to, like I got back to Russell Wilson, where he didn’t necessarily have to win games. He just didn’t have to lose games with that type of defense they had.”

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Even though Newton threw for 854 yards and three touchdowns and ran for two touchdowns in his first two NFL games, the Panthers lost both contests. In his third game, Newton’s passing yardage dropped to 158, but Carolina defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars 16-10 on Sept. 25, 2011.

The Panthers also lost their first two games with Young as their starting quarterback this season, and an ankle injury kept him from playing in the third – a 37-27 loss to the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday with Andy Dalton stepping in as Carolina’s QB.

Young returned to practice on Wednesday, providing hope the rookie quarterback will be back in the lineup when the Panthers play the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.

Newton went on to earn a Pro Bowl invitation as a rookie. Carolina went 6-10 in 2011 and 7-9 in his second season before the 2013 campaign brought a 12-4 record and the first of three straight NFC South titles for the Panthers.

The run culminated with the NFC Championship and a spot in Super Bowl 50 for Carolina in the 2015 season, for which Newton won the NFL Most Valuable Player Award.

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