Ejiro Evero comes into the 2025 season with significant questions about his capabilities. The Carolina Panthers gave the defensive coordinator a pass despite toiling through a historically bad campaign. That won't be the case next time around if improvements don't arrive.
Evero is on the hot seat. The Panthers believe his 3-4 base scheme can bear fruit with better personnel to call upon. Dan Morgan worked tirelessly over the recruitment period to achieve this objective. Now the onus is all on the under-fire coach.
After going from a potential head coaching candidate to the hot seat, Evero's margin for error is gone. He must get every decision right, whether it's in game-week preparations, during the contests, or who he chooses to take the field on any given down.
Ejiro Evero must fix Carolina Panthers' pass-rush after notable arrivals
This dynamic will shake out over the coming weeks. Carolina's preparations for the new season are gathering pace, and there is one position group above all else that could make or break Evero's hopes for redemption.
Alex Ballentine from The Bleacher Report highlighted this in greater detail. The analyst placed the upcoming conundrums facing Evero regarding Carolina's pass rush as something that could go either way. Morgan made some useful acquisitions, but they'll count for nothing if the defensive staff cannot find the correct formula.
"The Panthers are going to have a hard time being a serious NFL defense if they don't get a significant improvement in the pass-rush department. They were dead last in pressure percentage last season (16.2 percent). The moves they made this offseason give them some hope, but they don't equate to a concrete plan yet. The interior should help matters with the additions of Tershawn Wharton and Bobby Brown III, but that still counts on free agents Patrick Jones II, and rookies Nic Scourton and Princely Umanmielen making an immediate impact."Alex Ballentine
Nobody needs to tell Evero that the Panthers must generate more pressure next season. He saw that first-hand from start to finish in 2024.
They have more dynamism and explosiveness in the room, but allocating the right roles and deploying their top-four options effectively is critical. Anything less comes with grave consequences attached.
Morgan spent big money on the defensive front. The Panthers have space eaters in abundance — players capable of absorbing double teams and freeing up space for others to do damage. That should provide those on the edge with enough opportunities to flourish if Evero schemes things up effectively.
Whether he can accomplish this feat remains to be seen. But make no mistake, Evero's job depends on it.