After the not so surprising change of leadership in one of the worst seasons in franchise history, what will the next Carolina Panthers head coach have to solve to get things back on track for a defeated team?
The Carolina Panthers made another much-anticipated change of leadership with the firing of head coach Frank Reich after only mustering one win in 11 contests to begin the 2023 season. A stat that cannot be explained away no matter how hard you try, especially when considering the level of competition the team has faced to date.
The opposition has not exactly been the cream of the crop this season, which only makes things even worse for everyone involved. The Panthers' only victory came against the Houston Texans during what was a fairly shocking performance from C.J. Stroud all things considered.
It remains to be seen whether or not Reich was a sacrificial lamb for the underperformance of Bryce Young. Only time will tell if it was the coach or player that was the cause of one of the worst seasons by a top draft pick in recent memory.
The same could also be said for the general manager and ownership. But I digress on that particular point.
This team has nothing but problems and holes that need fixing. There is no clear path to contention, nothing to build upon and no player is safe at this point. Except probably Young simply due to the cost, both present and future, that was paid to secure the signal-caller.
Whatever hope and optimism that once existed in the offseason has been blown away. Each loss looked worse than the last and the Panthers find themselves staring at yet another coaching search - left wondering what might have been.
The team has the chance to correct the mistakes of the past. But does the new head coach have left to solve once the appointment is confirmed?
Is Bryce Young the guy?
Getting the burning question out of the way first here, but it is a legitimate one. Is Bryce Young even remotely the player many thought the quarterback could be coming out of college?
Let's just take a look at some statistics. While numbers aren't everything, they do paint a fairly distressing picture.
Young is on track for the worst rookie season by a quarterback taken No. 1 overall since David Carr in 2002. To put that in perspective - as well as put an asterisk on it - that is on par with JaMarcus Russell in his second season, only 300 more yards than Joe Burrow had in his injury-shortened rookie campaign, and over 1,000 fewer yards than Cam Newton.
While stats are not everything, this is nowhere near encouraging. The other thing to keep in mind when looking at these statistics is just how much the NFL has changed since the era of Russell and how much more dependent the league is on the passing game.
The touted decision-making has evaporated in the face of an NFL defense. Young's elusiveness looks more like someone who is clearly overmatched athletically, and the arm talent down the field is less than non-existent.
That isn't to say there isn't a possibility for a sophomore leap, as this is fairly common in the NFL. Especially with a new Carolina Panthers coaching staff and better players around him if recruitment goes well this offseason.
The first and biggest riddle to solve is how to maximize Young's obvious talent. Something Frank Reich was unable to accomplish during his brief time as head coach.
Improving the Carolina Panthers offense
The best years of the Carolina Panthers came when relying on a powerful run game - mainly headlined by Cam Newton - that opened up the deep ball. The same can be said for the rushing attack under interim coach Steve Wilks last season.
There is something to be said for molding your scheme to fit the superstar quarterback you just spent so much to acquire. There is also something to be said as to why college schemes stay in college.
This leads to my second point. There is also something to be said for molding a rookie to fit a new scheme. The third point is even the best player cannot thrive in a system that does not exploit their skills.
That is where the rub comes in. What is the offensive philosophy moving forward? Clearly, it isn't whatever has been in place this season, but what is there that the Panthers can try?
The easiest answer to this question is the power run game, which the offensive line is built for. But more on that later.
At the very least, switching to a run-focused team would take the pressure off Bryce Young and keep the ball in the Panthers' hands for longer. Whether they have the current personnel for that is debatable, but there are ways to fix it.
Figuring out an identity and sticking to it will be one of the hardest challenges for whoever inherits this mess of a team. It will be interesting to see just how it is molded into that image.
Carolina Panthers OL conundrum
It is almost comical how often I have written about how the Carolina Panthers offensive line needs to be fixed before anything else will work. How many times has that gone ignored?
Ikem Ekwonu is not the answer at left tackle unless there is substantial improvement. The rest of Carolina's protection is falling apart due to injury and underperformance. Neither of these is good for the longevity of anyone - least of all Bryce Young.
Brady Christensen looks every bit the part of a solid swing tackle. Other than that, there is little to build upon.
Austin Corbett fought through injury to come back but was less than stellar before once again being lost for the season, Taylor Moton has not been the same, and Bradley Bozeman has been a shell of the star from 2022.
A lot of this could come down to scheme fit. Bozeman especially is more of a power center than anything else. But that is only the beginning of the issues. Young is constantly running from pressure inside, outside, and all around.
You cannot win in today's NFL without a solid offensive line. It just doesn't happen, at least not at the highest level.
Evaluating exactly what the team has along the line, which isn't much, and cutting the necessary ties no matter how bad it will make the front office look, is the first of many steps that need taking. This line is by far the worst in the NFL and that is a terrible thing to say with just how much capital is sitting in it right now.
Starting from scratch seems daunting. But it may be the only thing that will fix it at this point.
Carolina Panthers secondary problems
The Carolina Panthers have a real secondary problem.
Jaycee Horn can't stay on the field. Donte Jackson has continued to remain a liability. While there has been improvement from C.J. Henderson, the much-maligned cornerback is best in the slot.
That leaves the Panthers with little in the way to build upon other than the relatively solid play of safeties Vonn Bell and Xavier Woods. Especially with the sheer amount of injuries that have plagued this defense.
Troy Hill is not going to be a building block and neither is David Long Jr. So really the only two players left to evaluate are Jackson and D'Shawn Jamison. Because it doesn't look like Jeremy Chinn will return once his contract expires next spring.
Can we trust Horn to stay healthy and more importantly be effective? Can Jackson somehow regain his early form? Should we even wait to see if either can?
This defense has held itself together in spite of the injury bug hitting it hard this season. But much more will be needed in the hope Carolina's next head coach can get this team out of the abyss and into contention.
Just who beleaguered owner David Tepper will choose as the man to replace Frank Reich is another matter.