Written by Derek Weatherly A.K.A. Panthers Disciple  

Is Something Burning? 

This season has been earmarked as a make-or-break season for Matt Rhule as he enters his third year as the Panthers' head coach.  A large portion of the Carolina Panthers fanbase have already taken to social media calling for the coach to be fired.  After a pair of five-win seasons for the first time NFL head coach there has been little done to show that Matt Rhule is capable of leading this team in a manner that would produce success.  On a variety of occasions, we have seen the once proclaimed "Program Builder" mismanage and mishandle situations as a coach in the NFL.  In week 1 the Cleveland Browns lined up for what would be a game winning field goal in the waning seconds of the fourth quarter.  The rookie kicker for the Browns was attempting a 58-yard field goal for the win in his very first game.  Why would the Panthers' head coach not use his final timeout to ice the kicker?  This is just of many incidents that have occurred in Rhule's time as the head coach.  Fans still have not forgotten that this is the same man that was not worried about practicing the 2-minute offense back in his first year as the head coach.  This is the same coach that just this past off-season told us that if he had a new quarterback here in Charlotte by the start of training camp that was enough time to get that player up to speed by week 1.  Isn't it odd that after the loss to the Browns in week 1 that Rhule wanted to remind people that Baker Mayfield had only been with the team five or six weeks?  This is just the most recent example on record and one of many that have left Panthers' fans fed up with the coach.  Throughout the preseason we saw a half-baked quarterback competition that only bread futility as Mayfield was eventually announced as the Panthers' starter.  This ultimately led to a lack of snaps and reps between Baker Mayfield and the 1-string offense.  After the Panthers made the trade to bring in Mayfield no one was shocked by the announcement that a quarterback competition would take place to see who the starter would be.  However, to draw out the process over the course of OTA's and linger into the preseason was almost criminal in some fans' eyes.  For a brief moment the eyes of the national media had turned to the Panthers after acquiring Baker Mayfield, and some of the talking heads went as far as to call this Carolina Panthers team a borderline playoff team.  It was another "splash"-move at the quarterback position by owner David Tepper who has seen three different starting quarterbacks in the past three season openers for the team.  It also can't go without stating that the Panthers made serious efforts to acquire Matthew Staffor and DeShawn Watson as well.  As a team, the Panthers have lacked an identity and direction for years now.  Panthers' fans may not have the fondest memories of Ron Rivera as the head coach of the team, and yet since bringing in Matt Rhule as the head coach it has felt like a huge "Missed Opportunity".  It is not only local eyeballs keeping an eye on the heat index for Matt Rhule as sportsbooks have posted betting odds with him as the favorite to be the next head coach of Nebraska University.  Oddly enough this is not the first time we have heard Matt Rhule's name came up in talks like this, rumors last year surfaced that we might see Matt Rhule return to the college ranks, and Panthers' fans would gladly escort him on his way.  The mismanagement of a player like Christian McCaffrey is one that fans and people around the NFL will likely see as a blemish against the team.  Whether it be the play calling of Joe Brady, former offensive coordinator, or inability to provide an offensive line that could block.  A term often used today in sports talk is Generational Talent, and in many aspects that is what CMC has proven to be.  It has been appalling to see the offense that has surrounded him at times.  There are correlations that could be drawn to back when Cam was with the team in his prime.  There was little done to surround the most talented player on the team with fellow talent, and fans saw the outcome from it.  Now Panthers' fans see players like CMC coming off another season wasted by injury, DJ Moore who is coming off three-strait 1000+ receiving yard seasons, Brian Burns who has made flashes as an edge rusher, and fans have to wonder how likely is it that players of this caliber can be retained in Carolina.  All three of these players were drafted to the team throughout the years, and despite clearly being talented have seen limited success in their time as members of the Carolina Panthers.  The team parted way with defensive linemen Haason Reddick and Morgan Fox after this past season, Reddick lead the team in sacks in 2022, then the team cuts former 2nd-round pick defensive tackle Daveon Nixon at the end of preseason and signed him to the practice squad, and finally bringing in newly released Henry Anderson of the New England Patriots to bolster the defensive line.  This has become the dysfunction that Panthers' fans have come to expect out of the coaching staff in Carolina, and little has been done to change this sentiment.  The mismanagement of players, lack of situational awareness on the sidelines, an inability to perform at an NFL level as a head coach, all acceptable reasons that the coach's seat in Carolina should not be warm, but searing hot.  The Week 2 matchup with the New York Giants is one that could in many ways prove to be the nail in the coffin for Matt Rhule as the Panthers' head coach.  This matchup up is a painful reminder of the disappointing loss they had against the Giants last year.  Week 2 this regular season could end up being a make-or-break moment for Matt Rhule's career as the Panthers' head coach.  If we see this Panthers team play poorly this Sunday, regardless of the outcome of the game, Matt Rhule's may exist on a razor's edge as we move forward in the season.  The home opener for the Panthers was stained by numerous miscues by the team and coaching staff.  Unconfirmed rumors indicate that there are issues players have expressed towards the coaching staff that are not known outside of the organization.  These are all signs that not only is it plausible to expect Matt Rhule to be fired as the head coach at some point this season, but that we should not be shocked if he is alone in his departure.  Panthers' fans could be on the horizon of all traces of the 2019 Baylor coaching staff being removed from the building.  I have been on record as saying I would like to see Brian Flores become the head coach of the Panthers. In three years as the head coach of the Miami Dolphins Brian Flores was on the verge of returning that organization back to the levels of respectability in the NFL. This was done while having an owner that by all accounts was actively working against Flores in the sense of winning games. The person that Brian Flores is both on and off the football field is a personality that the Panthers could greatly benefit from having in their locker room. It has never been truly made clear the expectations owner David Tepper has had for Rhule since hiring the former Baylor coach. It is unclear if Matt Rhule will last the season as the Panthers’ head coach. It is unclear if he will be the only coach to be looking for a new job aft this season. What is clear is that the Panthers have not yet devised a plan of action to resurrect this team from the withering tailspin it has been in for multiple seasons.