Carolina Panthers: Coach Ron Rivera makes changes in coaching staff
Six new coaches were added to the Carolina Panthers coaching core, bringing new eyes to the franchise and Ron Rivera’s staff.
Change is a tough ordeal for many to go through. It’s usually tougher in the world of professional sports. That didn’t stop head coach Ron Rivera from making a lot of change across the Carolina Panthers coaching roster. With six new hires completed in the last few weeks, these changes are meant to bring in a fresh feel at a time when the team was in danger of growing stagnant.
The changes to the Panthers coaching staff include the following. Steve Russ is the new linebackers coach, Brady Hoke is the defensive line coach, Scott Turner is the quarterbacks coach, Chase Blackburn is the special teams coach, Heath Farwell is the assistant special teams coach, and former Panther Travelle Wharton is the assistant offensive line coach.
These changes come at an important time during Rivera’s run as coach. While Rivera’s run with the Panthers has been widely successful, there’s a quiet rumbling that the team has reached its fullest potential with him at the helm. His career coaching record is 64-47-1, which includes a 3-4 post season record.
Even with four postseason appearances in seven years, Carolina hasn’t captured the NFL title that’s eluded them twice. At some point in time the “blame” falls onto the shoulders of the coach and Rivera may be facing that responsibility in the near future.
Back in January, Rivera was signed to a two-year extension. This move was helped to keep consistency within the leadership ranks of the organization as former owner, Jerry Richardson made the decision to sell the team as he faces multiple allegations of racial and sexual misconduct. Back then Rivera released a statement about his excitement to remain with the organization.
"“I’m very excited about it because I really like where we are as a football team,” Rivera said in an official statement. “We’ve done some really good things and we have an opportunity to do more. And I really appreciate the support we’ve gotten from our fans in the Carolinas. That’s a big reason why I want to continue my association with this organization.”"
Many of these changes were due to the departure of Steve Wilks, as he moved on to become head coach of the Arizona Cardinals after just one season as the defensive coordinator. He was tagged as a hot coaching prospect so it should not be shocking that a team plucked him away, forcing Rivera to make widespread changes throughout his coaching group. This group consists of a number of individuals that do not have a wealth of experience at the professional coaching level, but they bring experience in key positions either within the NFL or in the college ranks.
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The Carolina Panthers made a slew of changes within the coaching ranks to start the 2018 off season. With so much work left to keep this team successful and hopefully get them to a Super Bowl championship, Ron Rivera is bringing in some new eyes to the coaching core. The impact that these six new individuals have on this Panthers organization will be one of the stories to watch heading into the next season.