After Bill Belichick departed from the New England Patriots, a quarter of the NFL's 32 franchises are without a head coach. One of those eight teams has been here before, as the Carolina Panthers are searching for their third coach in five seasons after firing Frank Reich less than a year into his tenure.
Compared to the other openings, the Panthers job leaves much to be desired, but someone will take the reigns in Carolina and just may be the right guy for a struggling franchise desperate to get back to relevance.
Several NFL coordinators have been mentioned as the next Panthers head coach and BetOnline updated its odds on Wednesday, putting a new face as the favorite to land in Carolina. Los Angeles Chargers offensive coordinator Kellen Moore is the new betting favorite, jumping Baltimore Ravens DC Mike Macdonald. The aforementioned Belichick is also in the mix.
Next Panthers head coach (odds per BetOnline)
- Kellen Moore (+200)
- Ben Johnson (+400)
- Mike Macdonald (+500)
- Bill Belichick (+700)
- Eric Bieniemy (+900)
Moore has been an offensive coordinator for the past five seasons, four with the Dallas Cowboys before his move to LA in 2023. He scratched the head coaching surface after leading some high-flying Cowboys offenses but surprised a lot of people when he took the same position with another team.
His success in Dallas did not translate to LA as the Chargers struggled offensively for much of the season. Injuries played a factor but with Justin Herbert under center and several Pro Bowl players at his disposal, Moore and the Chargers offense simply did not meet expectations. They finished the year ranked 18th in total offense and 21st in scoring offense.
Despite that, Moore is expected to be given the benefit of the doubt and have another opportunity to land a head coaching gig. He interviewed for the Chargers opening and will likely have several other interviews before deciding his future.
Carolina has options
Carolina is expected to interview Mike Macdonald, who has seen interview requests from multiple teams. The Ravens had one of the most consistent defenses in football each of the last two seasons under Macdonald, finishing in the top 10 in total defense both years. Baltimore allowed 17.5 points per game since the start of the 2022 season.
The Panthers also requested an interview with Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken.
Detroit Lions OC Ben Johnson is also seen as a main target for the Panthers. Owner David Tepper is reportedly a big fan of Johnson and is prepared to make him a “Godfather-type” offer.
Johnson has interest from at least five teams, though his focus is still on leading the Lions offense as they begin what they hope is a long playoff run. Detroit finished in the top five in both yards and points per game in 2022 and 2023.
The Panthers don’t have as much to offer to potential hires as other teams with a head coach vacancy can, but the chance to coach quarterback Bryce Young is enough to convince someone to take the job. Of course, a significant raise and a first head coaching opportunity are reasons as well, but Carolina's next coach likely needs to be in love with Young for it to work.
It will be interesting to see if the Panthers can land one of the big fish as their next head coach.
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