The Panthers became one of a few 0-2 teams to respond with a Week 3 win. That likely extended Matt Rhule‘s leash, but the third-year Carolina HC is not out of the woods yet.
Rhule is under “heavy scrutiny” from David Tepper, and the franchise’s fifth-year owner is losing patience with the former successful college coach, Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com notes. As we heard last weekend, no firing is imminent. Rhule (11-25 in two-plus seasons) remains tied to a seven-year, $62MM contract he signed in 2020.
The Panthers also have a plus-3 point differential this season, which has seen them lose on 56- and 58-yard game-winning field goals. But the odds are against the former Temple and Baylor HC making it to the 2023 season in Carolina.
After the Panthers shelled out a monster contract for an unproven NFL coach, many around the league expect Tepper to replace Rhule with an experienced option, Wilson adds. The Panthers would be in the market for a retread, a route this franchise has taken just once (George Seifert) in its history. Five of the 10 teams with coaching vacancies went with second-chance options this year as well. Cowboys DC Dan Quinn, Bills DC Leslie Frazier, Steelers linebackers coach Brian Flores (his lawsuit notwithstanding) and Jim Caldwell were retread options to take multiple interviews this offseason but not land jobs.
This is a similar path to the one the Panthers traversed when identifying their 2022 offensive coordinator, with former head coach Ben McAdoo landing the gig. Unfortunately, Carolina’s offense is what has held Rhule back. The defensive coordinator Rhule brought with him from the college ranks, Phil Snow, oversaw last season’s second-ranked (yardage-wise) unit. And the team’s Week 3 turnover spree led to the win over the Saints. Offensively, the Panthers have yet to see much from Baker Mayfield, who is thus far continuing the Rhule-era run of unsatisfactory quarterback play.
Rhule’s inability to properly staff the QB spot is not for lack of trying; the team was linked to Deshaun Watson in 2021 and was a finalist for the embattled passer this year. But the trades for Mayfield and Sam Darnold and the Teddy Bridgewater free agency accord have not worked out. Though, Mayfield has only played three games. The former Browns starter will enter Week 4 last in QBR. Should Rhule be canned during the season, he would undoubtedly be a coveted option for college programs seeking an upgrade.
Just fire him now. He’s not an NFL head coach. That’s obvious. Move on and start over. Trade CMC while he has value.
McCaffrey can’t possibly have much trade value. Gifted as he is, he missed 23 games between last year and the year before, he’s banged up again already this year, and he’s got $18 million+ in guarantees left after this year.
As for firing Rhule, yeah, but it’s not like they have a great interim plan on staff. Ben McAdoo will still be running that offense in circles.
Honestly, I wouldn’t fire him yet. I agree with you that he’s not an NFL coach, but why not let him finish out the year and tank for a pick? They’re going to pay him anyway.
If I were Rhule, I’d want to get canned sooner rather than later, so Nebraska can pay me more to jump the line. College coaches get paid more at big time programs than the majority of NFL head coaches anyway outside of a select few (I think I remember reading that Belichick is the highest paid in all of football but he also is GM). If I was a good coach in college I’m not sure why you would ever leave for the NFL, where the pay rate has fallen way behind the college booster money…
What a depressing list of possibilities.
Hardly surprising though as Tepper really has no business being an owner. He jumps from one hit or miss plan to another hoping things will somehow workout.
You can have Kyle Shanahan. 2 runs plays and a 5 yard pass on 3rd and 8 is getting old.
Don’t give a college coach a 7 year deal when you don’t intend to give him 3 years to build the program.
What signs do you see of a program being built? They’ve had a new desperation move at QB every year, he scapegoated an offensive coordinator already, they’ve shipped off tons of draft picks for other team’s disappointing draft picks and for a quizzical win now move last year. They now have an offense with absolutely no sense of direction. Their defense, with all the draft capital they’ve funneled into it, is merely OK. This isn’t college. He can’t fall back on recruiting and second rate competition. Can you point to a single area where he’s shown even promise as an NFL coach?
The “Owner” thought that by giving him a 7 year contract that the coach could “build” a winning and successful program. But obviously the owner had blind faith in an incompetent coach. So here he is. I hope the owner learned a lesson by throwing money at a college coach who had no business coaching in the pros
This is a professional team, not a “program,” and that’s a not insignificant part of the problem. Anyone who needs 7 years to turn a modern NFL franchise around is terrible. Heck, 3 is even too long TBH. But I do agree with not giving a college coach a 7-year deal…
Program, professional team whatever… point is the owner doesn’t have anyone to blame but himself for being stupid by signing him to that deal. 7 years lol
Well… yeah. Agreed.
I’d pushback on the idea 3 years is “too long” to turn around a franchise. It really depends on the situation, but often a coach isn’t taking a job with a franchise QB in place. If they identify and acquire one by the end of their first year, that’s only 2 years to get them up to speed. Unless the coach is completely inept like Urban was, I just think you have to have some patience.
Give him crappy players and expect him to win. Two QB’s whose teams gave up on them, so lets trade for them.
Both of those quarterbacks regressed after they got there. Mayfield finished 10th in the league in 2020 and was injured last year. He’s healthy this year and is worse
Both of those QBs were already where they are today. If they weren’t, they wouldn’t have been available.
Not a fan of the coach, but where does the GM fit in here for accountability?
The GM fits squarely in the owner’s box.
Mayfield is worse. Last year he was injured. 2020, he was 10th. Darnold had better years in NY. Look it up
He wanted those crappy players. So yeah, I expect him to win with them.
Impatient after less than 3 seasons? This is a personnel problem more than a coaching problem. I don’t think he’s a great coach or anything, but he’s hardly the sole reason the Panthers can’t win.
You guys talk like he doesn’t have a strong influence on personnel. They even have five Temple players!
I agree that Rhule hasn’t had the best of QBs with which to work; however, the play calling has been *boggle*
I get Christian’s injury history leading to wanting to reduce his carries but his targets? How does that keep a Secondary “honest” with your WRs?
… and calling plays for Anderson over Moore then wonder why the press immediately jumps to the Temple connection?
Sean Payton has been dropping hints about wanting to return to coaching but I seriously doubt he’d be interested in the loaf Carolina’s Front Office pinched
meh, at this point, I’m just venting as I watch two outstanding young players waste years on a bumbling Offense
What the heck was the owner thinking of signing him to a 7 yr contract at 62 Mil ?? Lol. What an idiot
Lol 7 years for a pac 12 coach.
Baylor is not in the pac 12, neither is temple
While the easy thing to do would be to blame Mayfield, I would also ask this: who exactly has had success with Ben McAdoo? Other than Aaron Rodgers, who achieved much more without McAdoo than with him (McAdoo was also only a quarterbacks coach, but I was being generous)?
Rhule seems out of his depth, but I predicted before Mayfield (or even Darnold) got there that he was not walking into a stable situation. Both Mayfield and Darnold were already on rocky ground career-wise. Going to a chaotic, negative, and unstructured environment such as what seems to exist in Carolina is the opposite of what they would have needed to have even some chance of success. Add bad coaching and scheming to that, and you have the ingredients to a very unsuccessful franchise.
I know I repeat myself here, and for that I apologize, but Tepper’s impatience and temperament is the source of the strenuous environment that has made it impossible for the Panthers to establish a winning culture or team identity. Rivera had some notable flaws, and could have used a few changes on the field, but he did establish a good culture in Carolina which was the foundation for any success that they had. Rhule has been unable to do so, and without any contributions from above in that regard, it’s easy to see why. Everyone knows who pulls the strings in Carolina, and it’s not the head coach.
When I heard Rhule got that contract, the first thing I thought was “Didn’t they learn anything from the last HC who’s only accomplishment was being QB Coach to a HOF QB?”
fwiw: Jets clearly didn’t even after Gase went out of way to set new levels of incompetence in Miami
Tepper is part of the problem.