Panthers News: Frank Reich, Bryce Young, Week 13 and flaming seats

Which Carolina Panthers news stories are hitting the headlines following their disappointing loss at the Tennessee Titans in Week 12?

It was the same old story for the Carolina Panthers in Week 12. Despite Ejiro Evero's defense holding their own in difficult circumstances, they were unable to generate any positive momentum on the offensive side of things, which has been the story of the campaign and leaves Frank Reich's men with one win to show from 11 regular-season contests in 2023.

This is an absolute embarrassment in no uncertain terms. Following such a poor display, the stories causing debate include Reich's assessment, Bryce Young's accountability while all around him crumbles, flaming seats, and an early look at Week 13 against Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Let's delve into each topic in more detail.

Carolina Panthers at Buccaneers odds for Week 13

According to the latest odds from FanDuel Sportsbook, the Carolina Panthers are 6.0-point underdogs at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 13. This can be bet at -110 depending on which side of the points spread takes your fancy (bet $110 to win $100).

Anyone brave enough to place their hard-earned money on Carolina's money line can do so with odds of +220 attached (bet $100 to win $220). Tampa Bay is favored to triumph on home soil and in Baker Mayfield's revenge game at -270 (bet $270 to win $100).

FanDuel Sportsbook has set the over/under at 38.5 points.

• Over 38.5 points: -105 (bet $105 to win $100)
• Under 38.5 points: -115 (bet $115 to win $100)

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

Carolina Panthers HC Frank Reich's assessment

Frank Reich looks like a broken man. His offense is failing the Carolina Panthers and tensions are rising among the fanbase to levels seen during Matt Rhule's final days as head coach.

While it would be a shock to see David Tepper pull the plug on this experiment in-season, it's not looking good for Reich right now. Even in the face of adversity, the head coach remained resolute during post-game comments via Pro Football Talk, with the focus now turning to three divisional games in consecutive weeks.

"What are you going to do? You’re 1-10. What, are you going to start feeling sorry for yourself? You’re going to think something will magically fix everything? No. We lost a close football game today. These games are winnable. That message doesn’t fly when you’re 1-10, but I know these games are winnable. I know we have the players and the coaches to do that. So we regroup, and we get ready for this week. But the guys have been great. We come in there on Mondays. Everybody’s accountable, coaches and players. We know the mode: fight to get better, it’s week-to-week. We got three division opponents coming up. So, it starts this week in Tampa."

Frank Reich via Pro Football Talk

These are empty words. The fans have seen enough and as Reich freely admitted, there's nothing much he can do to shift the narrative at this late stage of the campaign.

After all the big ambitions and supposed strengthening throughout the offseason, the Panthers are now facing the real prospect of handing over the No. 1 overall selection in the 2024 NFL Draft to the Chicago Bears. That is nothing short of disgusting.

Bryce Young looking for consistency

It was another difficult afternoon for Bryce Young. The quarterback flashed moments of encouragement when given time in the pocket, but he was running for his life more often than not behind one of the worst offensive lines in franchise history through 11 weeks.

Young's now been sacked 40 times this season. This works out at four times per game given he sat one out through injury, which is an absolute embarrassment and complete organizational malpractice given how much the Carolina Panthers invested in the signal-caller.

The former Alabama star took accountability for the loss via the team's website. Young also highlighted the need to improve consistency - flashing is no longer enough despite some success in fourth-down situations.

"It gives a lot of juice, a lot of energy. We have to do a better job of building on that. I think, for us, it shows what we can do. We just have to make sure that we're doing it consistently. And when we do get that, that we can build on it. So that's something that we definitely want to improve on moving forward."

Bryce Young via Panthers.com

As we've been saying for weeks, Young's primary objective for Carolina's remaining fixtures is survival. Gaining anything positive will be difficult, so coming through his final few regular season commitments unscathed is the most important thing above all else.

If that means the Panthers sitting him down to prevent injury, so be it.

Carolina Panthers flaming seats

Pressure is building to high levels within the Carolina Panthers after moving to 1-10. That's unfortunately not a typo after one of the worst starts to a season in the franchise's eventful three decades as an NFL operation.

There are obvious signs of growing friction, too. Perhaps the biggest of all came from team owner David Tepper, who was seen leaving the locker room firing off an expletive and shaking his head in disgust according to the media waiting to speak with players.

He didn't speak to head coach Frank Reich immediately after. But you can bet your bottom dollar a difficult conversation is going to occur in the coming hours.

Will Kunkel of FOX Houston and formerly of FOX Charlotte stated via sources that Reich's seat has gone from hot to flaming following another woeful offensive display - the second in succession since he took over play-calling duties from offensive coordinator Thomas Brown.

While Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network said Tepper would evaluate everything at the end of the campaign, this has gone way over the tipping point. The big plans and delusions emanating from those in power before the campaign are long gone, replaced by the prospect of yet another reset after one season with the current regime.

Of course, that won't change the biggest problem of all. Tepper is the root of all evil in Carolina and unless he alters his approach, the Panthers are unlikely to flourish.