Panthers fire Rhule, should they be sellers at the deadline?
The Carolina Panthers fired Matt Rhule Monday morning after less than three years. Should they be sellers at the trade deadline? The obvious answer is yes, but I’m not sure they should, as some call it, “blow it up” like many think they should. Matt Rhule clearly is not fit to be a head coach in the NFL, and I think it’s likely that he heads back to college, as he’ll likely have some suitors there.
The Carolina Panthers will now begin compiling a list of head coaching candidates for 2023 and beyond. Sean Payton is likely at the very top of that list, but it’s unknown whether he’s eyeing a 2023 return to coaching.
Panthers could reload draft capital if they become sellers at NFL Trade Deadline
The Panthers are 1-4, and I don’t think there’s a chance they can make the playoffs. For all intents and purposes, their 2022 season is effectively over. Because of this, it might be smart to compile some draft picks, as they have only four in 2023 because of some trades.
They also don’t have a ton of draft picks in 2024, either. However, I don’t think it would be a smart idea to be huge sellers at the deadline. Perhaps they can make a trade or two, but to me, they have a great foundation of players, and if they can get the quarterback right, they’ll be a good team.
On offense, they prioritized rebuilding their offensive line. Taylor Moton, Austin Corbett, and Ikem Ekwonu are a solid three to continue to build around. Christian McCaffrey is one of the most talented running backs in the NFL, and I’m not sure a team would even be willing to give up draft capital for him, who struggles to stay healthy.
I think it makes the most sense for the Panthers to keep him because their offense runs through the former Stanford Cardinal. They also have a very nice core of receivers in DJ Moore, Robby Anderson, Laviska Shenault, and Rashard Higgins.
My main point here is that the offense is largely good and I think there isn’t a need to blow up the core that they have.
On defense, I feel the same way. They have some absolute dogs on defense like Jeremy Chinn, Shaq Thompson, Brian Burns, Derrick Brown, and Frankie Luvu. They have talent at all three levels on this side of the ball. What good would it do the new head coaching regime to come into a situation where the front office traded several of their young, talented players?
To me, the Carolina Panthers simply need a re-tool, not a rebuild. Perhaps if they can get the head coach right, they won’t need to immediately get the quarterback right. Look at the New York Giants, for example. They have significantly less talent than the Panthers and are 4-1.
To me, Carolina needs to focus on finding the next great head coach. I think that coach would be able to show the league how much talent Carolina has on their roster. The quarterback situation might not be as easy. If they have one of the top two picks in the NFL draft, they could take CJ Stroud or Bryce Young, but if they win a few more games, that might not happen.
Overall, though, I am not of the opinion that the Panthers need to be huge sellers at the deadline.