Even though they wound up with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, the Carolina Panthers aren’t your typical team that picks first overall. Except, you wouldn’t know the 2022 Panthers managed to win seven games, finishing second in their division based on this year’s results, with Frank Reich now leading the way.
Instead of taking a step forward, where they’d have a chance at competing for the NFC South division crown, the Panthers have taken a large step back in Coach Reich’s first season. Entering Week 12, the Panthers were on track to finish with the worst record in the NFL. In normal conditions, this would earn Carolina the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, yet the Bryce Young trade sends this pick to the Chicago Bears instead.
Needless to say, the Panthers have been much worse under Coach Reich, scoring fewer points and allowing more than last year’s team, coached largely by Steve Wilks.
While it’s rare for a team to fire a coach mid-season less than one year after hiring him, there’s been speculation that Panthers owner David Tepper is growing impatient with the lack of progress. Remember, Tepper fired Matt Rhule after a 1-4 start a season ago, albeit in his third year coaching the team.
Yet, while the games are not the same, Tepper has also had a quick trigger in other ventures, such as his Charlotte FC soccer team, where he’s fired two coaches for a franchise that was founded in 2022. Charlotte FC even made the playoffs in one of those two seasons.
In other words, Tepper demands excellence, and he won’t hesitate to make changes if he feels they’re necessary, but what about someone like Coach Reich, who’s in his sixth year as an NFL head coach?
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Is Frank Reich on the hot seat in Carolina?
On Sunday, NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo chimed in on Reich’s future. Could we see a mid-season firing again in Carolina, just one year after doing the same with Coach Rhule? Based on Garafolo’s sources, it doesn’t sound like it.
It’s only natural for Tepper and Co. to have concerns in Carolina. After all, look at the quick success fellow rookie QB C.J. Stroud is having with the Houston Texans, who are in playoff contention in the AFC after actually finishing as the second-worst team in the NFL a season ago, unlike Carolina, who traded to get the top pick.
Yet, it’s probably wise for Tepper to be a bit more patient with the coach he signed to a four-year contract and give Reich a fair shot at getting this pack back on track. As bad as things look in Carolina now, sometimes it’s best for an inexperienced QB like Young to have stability.
It also wouldn’t hurt to have a competent offensive line or a bonafide No. 1 receiver capable of complementing Adam Thielen’s stellar play. We can’t put all that on Coach Reich, but it’s possible he’ll end up as the scapegoat eventually anyway.
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