5 critical decisions that caused Matt Rhule’s demise with the Panthers

Matt Rhule surrounded himself with too many familiar faces

One thing that Matt Rhule clearly wanted upon replacing Ron Rivera was some familiar faces across the board to smooth his transition. His coaching staff largely came from the college ranks and it didn’t take long for the roster to have a distinct Temple/Baylor feel through free agency and the draft.

While this was important for Rhule and probably helped assist implement his way of thinking to a new set of players, very few made the necessary impact on the field. Something that was heavily criticized when things turned sour.

Robbie Anderson had one good season but has suffered ever since. The likes of Sean Chandler and Bravvion Roy have also been ineffective parts of the rotation.

And as for Tahir Whitehead, the less said about that the better,

There were some success stories. Haason Reddick’s first season was sensational, but the Carolina Panthers opted not to keep him around despite gaining 11 sacks opposite Brian Burns, which appears to be yet another grave error of judgment.

Matt Ioannidis’ impressive start since joining in 2022 free agency is another encouraging sign. However, Rhule’s lack of comfort with established individuals he didn’t know caused the coach to surround himself with too much of his old college talent – a decision he’d probably like to have back.