NFL Fans Rip Panthers, David Tepper for Firing Frank Reich amid Bryce Young Rumors

For the second time in as many seasons, the Carolina Panthers are firing a coach during the season.

The Panthers parted ways with Frank Reich on Monday, a day after an ugly 17-10 loss to the Tennessee Titans. Reich was 1-10 in his lone season in Carolina, with the offensive guru failing to develop Bryce Young into a franchise-level quarterback.

Young has thrown for 1,877 yards and nine touchdowns against eight interceptions as a rookie while being surrounded by perhaps the NFL’s worst set of skill-position players. The Alabama product was owner David Tepper’s handpicked choice to be taken with the No. 1 overall pick in April’s draft, and fans are already ripping the owner for his organization’s instability and lack of supporting cast.

Tepper bought the Panthers from Jerry Richardson in 2018 and has been notoriously short-tempered ever since. He will be making his third full-time coaching hire in less than six calendar years, with Riech following Matt Rhule and Ron Rivera out the door. All three coaches were fired in-season, and the Panthers have not won seven games in a season since Tepper took over.

For contrast, the Panthers won fewer than seven games just once in the six seasons before Tepper purchased the franchise.

While the new Carolina owner has been aggressive in investing money into the organization, he’s also simply not put the right people in charge. The Panthers have perhaps the NFL’s worst roster and owe their first-round pick to the Chicago Bears for the trade that landed them Young in the first place.

Tepper’s next coaching hire will be critical in justifying the Young pick. Whoever takes the job will be working at a talent deficit with the roster, so they’ll need to be able to scheme Young into advantageous situations.

Given the recent success of the Kyle Shanahan coaching tree, it would not be a surprise if Tepper focused his search on someone with a Shanahan-esque system. Houston Texans offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik is a name that stands out given the work he’s done with CJ Stroud this season.

Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson is also among the names that should receive mention.