Why Joe Brady’s time with the Panthers might be short-lived

Joe Brady’s start to life with the Carolina Panthers might see him become a hot commodity in head coaching searches next year.

The Carolina Panthers seem to have struck gold with their appointment of Joe Brady as offensive coordinator. He might have made some slight errors through the first two games, but his adjustments have brought the offense to a new level over the last fortnight.

It is no surprise that this has coincided with back-to-back victories for the Carolina Panthers, who now find themselves at 2-2 and with plenty of encouraging signs for the remainder of the campaign. There is sure to be some bumps along the way for their young roster that is still learning, but their preseason projections of a dismal record might not be as bad as first feared.

Much was expected of Brady when he was hired by the Panthers. The progressive offensive mind was the leading force behind LSU’s historic passing attack on their way to a convincing National Championship win in 2019, which turned quarterback Joe Burrow from a mid-round afterthought to the consensus No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Joe Brady has hit the ground running with the Carolina Panthers

Brady has an embarrassment of riches at his disposal, something he is putting to good use. Carolina’s offense was always going to get better as the campaign goes on and the way they have hit the ground running is a testament to their coordinator’s preparation in the lead-up to competitive action.

This might be good news for the Panthers, but it might see some unwanted attention coming Brady’s way following the campaign.

There will be plenty of NFL teams on the lookout for new head coaches in the New Year. One could argue there might be seven or eight organizations searching for a fresh start given the way they’ve started the season and there is going to be some interest in Brady despite his relative lack of experience at the next level.

He did spend some time with the New Orleans Saints as an offensive assistant, which gave him some familiarity with Teddy Bridgewater that is standing them in good stead with the Panthers. We have seen a number of gurus on offense get some head coaching jobs in recent years and Brady might just be in high demand if things continue to trend in this fashion.

His concepts and working and Brady has come up with some nice schemes to get the most out of some outstanding playmakers in Carolina. Losing him after just one season would be nothing short of a disaster for the Panthers, who gambled on the coach to spearhead their offense back into postseason contention.

It’s important not to get too carried away. Brady is about to enter his fifth game as an NFL play-caller he will need to show consistency between now and the end of the campaign to make teams sit up a little more and take notice. But there is little disputing the fact that he is going to get a coaching job sooner rather than later.

The Panthers were probably all-too-aware of this when the appointed Brady. He came in with a glowing reputation and this has only strengthened after an eye-catching start to life as a prominent member of Carolina’s coaching staff.