After going 15-1 and losing the Super Bowl last season, the Panthers have taken a huge step back in 2016. The team enters the final week of the season with a 6-9 record, and both the offense and the defense rank towards the bottom half of the league in several team stats.
Despite the struggles, coach Ron Rivera indicated that he isn’t anticipating any changes to his coaching staff…as long as it’s his decision.
“Remember, it’s the same group that was 15-1, same group that led the league in scoring,” Rivera told Bill Voth of Black and Blue Review. “And in the last five years, we’ve had a top-10 defense. So as I look it and break things down, yeah, there’s some things that we have to work on and change. You guys heard me talk about evolving. We have to.”
As Darin Gantt of ProFootballTalk.com points out, Rivera hasn’t stuck to similar promises in the past. For instance, the team relieved special teams coach Richard Rodgers of his duties following the 2014 campaign. Gantt believes that offensive coordinator Mike Shula and quarterbacks coach Ken Dorsey could find themselves on the hot seat.
Let’s take a look at some other coaching notes from around the NFL…
- Things haven’t gone as planned during John Fox‘s second season with the Bears. The team is looking to avoid their worst 16-game record in franchise history, and blame will naturally lie on the head coach. Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune writes that chairman George McCaskey will likely wait until the end of the season to make any decisions on his coaching staff’s fate. Campbell notes that the organization waited until the 2014 offseason to fire general manager Phil Emery and coach Marc Trestman.
- Eric Branch of SFGate.com wonders if head coach Chip Kelly‘s unwillingness to adjust his fast-paced gameplan could ultimately lead to his demise with the 49ers. As the writer notes, the coach wasn’t necessarily put in a position to succeed with a lack of talent on the roster. However, Campbell believes the coach’s devotion to his gameplan could come up during offseason discussions with CEO Jed York and a new general manager (assuming Trent Baalke is fired). For what it’s worth, Kelly hasn’t indicated that he’s willing to change his ways. “I think we always look at everything on a weekly basis trying to see how we can improve,” Kelly said following his team’s overtime loss to the Jets in early December. “You look at the game yesterday: It’s about making one more play than the other team. It’s not like we’re getting taken to the woodshed and don’t have an opportunity to compete and play.”
- Jets head coach Todd Bowles and general manager Mike Maccagnan are expected to receive a “mulligan” from owner Woody Johnson for the team’s subpar performance this season, writes ESPN.com’s Rich Cimini. The writer acknowledges that it’s been a tough year for the organization, but he also notes that it’d be a knee-jerk reaction to fire the tandem after only two seasons.
If Pace can have another strong draft, (like last year), maybe there will be some hope that the Bear’s never ending rebuild may actually get somewhere. But with that lame ownership, Ted (What’s a football?) Phillips as team president and a head coach in Fox who just seems to have no fire left, I’m not holding my breath.
The Bears had nothing to work with in the past four seasons. A hurt quarterback they never invested in, an aging running back and a hit and miss receiver. I’m ignorant on how to rebuild an NFL team. How long should it take a team like the Bears to turn around?
A hurt quarterback that “they never invested in”? What MORE could the Bears (or Broncos) given to Cutler? They gave him the best receiving corp in the league. He had a pro-bowl RB and tight-end. He had an offensive minded head coach and some of the best OCs in the NFL. Then they waited patiently for him to win (8 YEARS).
The results are conclusive: Jay Cutler is not a winner! Never has been, never will be. His record speaks for itself, and all the Cutler apologists need to accept it. You need more that 20 yard passes to be a winning QB in the NFL.
Your thoughts are too all over the place to be coherent. You make it sound like Lovie Smith was an offensive minded coach and that the Bears had the best receiving corps in the league for eight years. Hey remember when the Bears took their punt returner and tried to make him their star wide receiver? That’s building around your QB. Remember when they never improved the O-Line so Cutler got sacked 60 times not including playoffs and preseason?
Let me say it again, just for you. The Bears have done everything an organization can do to help a QB be successful. It hasn’t worked because he’s not a winner. He had a pro-bowl receiver corp, pro-bowl TE, a pro-bowl RB, an offensive-minded HC in Trestman, and very good OCs. Despite all of that, he played poorly and acted like a 3-yr old most of the time. Cutler is not a winner. The Bears can’t give him away for free he’s so ill-respected around the league. Cutting him will be the best thing the organization has done in 8 years. Draft a QB with someone with some elusivenes and athletic ability and groom them to take over in a year.
took the cubs 4yrs to win on rebuild ha. but football u can turn it around quickly. get kc s eric berry rams cb jermaine johnson in free agency and have another strong draft like getting ala dl allen in 1st and try 2 trade 2nd rd pick for ne qb garoppolo bears could be in playoffs
Trade a 2nd round pick for a back-up QB who doesn’t play? Sure, that makes sense. Smh
garoppolo better then anybody in this draft started 1st 2 games this yr looked pretty good other alternative is bring back hoyer barkley cook
The going rate for Jimmy G is going to be a minimum 1st rounder and 4th rounder. So yeah, he was actually coming in light with the 2nd round choice prediction. Don’t be a a$$hat, Chisoxcity.
ya cubsfan i did go a little light if its more then that may have to move on. the bears 2nd rd is around 35th pick and i dont c anybody in draft worth drafting a qb there. may have to roll the dice with 1 of there 2 4th rd picks and go after ole miss qb kelly or cal qb webb davis. then bring back hoyer and barkley
He does not play because Tom Brady is there. Do you understand that ChiSoxCity? I guess you do not
cal qb davis webb oops ha