The Panthers are making multiple changes to their defensive staff after ranking dead-last in yards and points allowed this season.

Head coach Dave Canales recently reaffirmed his confidence in defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero, but the team has moved on from three members of his staff. Safeties coach Bert Watts, outside linebackers coach Tem Lukabu, and quality control coach Bobby Maffei will not return under Evero in 2025, per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.

Watts was the Broncos’ outside linebackers coach in 2022 and followed Evero from Denver to Carolina in 2023. The Panthers’ secondary allowed the 10th-most passing yards in the NFL in 2024, along with a league-high 35 touchdowns and just nine interceptions. The unit did deal with several injuries, including stints on injured reserve by Sam Franklin and Jordan Fuller.

Lukabu also joined the Panthers in 2023 after serving as Boston College’s defensive coordinator. Carolina’s edge rush struggled to generate pressure without Brian Burns this year, and the team as a whole allowed a league-high 3,057 rushing yards and 5.2 yards per carry.

Maffei started with the Panthers as a defensive assistant in 2022 and received a promotion to defensive quality control coach after Evero’s arrival. His specific role in the team’s defense is not known, but it’s not surprising to see widespread changes after the Panthers’ defensive struggles during the regular season.

Canales and Evero will spend the coming weeks interviewing candidates to join their staff and help the Panthers defense bounce back from one of the worst statistical seasons in league history.