Perhaps the most improved team in the NFL in 2023 is the Carolina Panthers. From their coaching hires to personnel moves, they have done a great job.
My goodness, I LOVE what the Panthers have done this year and they deserve to be talked about. Their first step toward improvement was firing Matt Rhule during the 2022 season. Steve Wilks took his place and immediately turned the team into a more competitive product.
However, Carolina decided to not make Wilks the full-time head coach but instead pivoted to Frank Reich, who was unfairly fired as head coach of the Indianapolis Colts in 2022.
Reich is an excellent coach and insanely talented with QBs. In nearly every year in Indy, Reich was able to squeeze legitimate production out of quarterbacks who appeared to be over the hump.
Reich also made some excellent moves on his staff, bringing in the likes of Jim Caldwell, Dom Capers, Ejiro Evero, and Thomas Brown. Not only did the Panthers make the right move in hiring Reich, but the coaches he’s brought over should oversee a quick turnaround in Carolina.
Perhaps the biggest move during the offseason was when the Carolina Panthers traded up to the first overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, securing the chance to draft their QB of the future.
And if that wasn’t enough, even though they lost DJ Moore, Carolina signed a solid haul of offensive weapons in Adam Thielen, Hayden Hurst, and Miles Sanders.
QB Andy Dalton also signed with the Panthers this offseason as a potential bridge option.
All in all, the moves that Carolina has made this offseason have made them big winners in 2023 thus far, and honestly, the NFL South lacks so much talent that I truly believe they can compete and win the division in 2023.
They’ve got the best coaching staff, have the potential to have the best quarterback, and definitely have the best roster.