Carolina Panthers fire head coach Matt Rhule
Matt Rhule’s tenure with the Carolina Panthers has been a frustrating one. After being hired out of the college ranks to take over the franchise, the team had yet to even finish close to .500 in his first two seasons. Now, his time with the team has come to an end very early in his third campaign.
The Panthers made things official on Monday, announcing that the team has “parted ways” with Rhule. Defensive pass game coordinator and secondary coach Steve Wilks will serve as the Panthers’ interim head coach for the remainder of the season.
Rhule took over the Panthers back in 2020 after his rebuild jobs at Temple and Baylor. However, that same success did not translate to the NFL. Carolina went 5-11 in his first season and then 5-12 in his second. His seat was one of the hotter ones entering the 2022 year and the Panthers’ 1-4 start ended up being the final nail in the coffin.
The Panthers opened the season with two close losses, falling 26-24 to the Cleveland Browns in Week 1 and 19-16 to the New York Giants in Week 2. Carolina beat the New Orleans Saints 22-14 in Week 3, but then dropped two straight games in the ensuing weeks. Most recently, the Panthers were dismantled at the hands of the San Francisco 49ers, falling 37-15 at home.
For whatever reason, Rhule never panned out in this opportunity in the pros. Whether due to injuries or questions across the roster, the fact of the matter is he didn’t get the job done in the division or in the league in general. However, his name will now be a fairly hot commodity whether in a lesser role in the pros or back at the college level. It just won’t be in Charlotte next time around.
Now, the Panthers will begin a search for the next leader of their franchise. Rhule was hired to do what he did best in college – to rebuild the team. That didn’t happen, and now Carolina is in need of a coach that is capable of building things both for now and for the future.
For Rhule, he will surely be mentioned for other opportunities, albeit they’ll likely come back in the college ranks. His name has already been mentioned for some openings across the country, and more are undoubtedly coming soon.