The Panthers are making a number of modifications to their defensive employees after rating dead-last in yards and factors allowed this season.
Head coach Dave Canales lately reaffirmed his confidence in defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero, however the workforce has moved on from three members of his employees. Safeties coach Bert Watts, outdoors linebackers coach Tem Lukabu, and high quality management coach Bobby Maffei is not going to return underneath Evero in 2025, per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.
Watts was the Broncos’ outdoors linebackers coach in 2022 and adopted Evero from Denver to Carolina in 2023. The Panthers’ secondary allowed the Tenth-most passing yards within the NFL in 2024, together with a league-high 35 touchdowns and simply 9 interceptions. The unit did cope with a number of accidents, together with stints on injured reserve by Sam Franklin and Jordan Fuller.
Lukabu additionally joined the Panthers in 2023 after serving as Boston School’s defensive coordinator. Carolina’s edge rush struggled to generate stress with out Brian Burns this yr, and the workforce as an entire allowed a league-high 3,057 dashing yards and 5.2 yards per carry.
Maffei began with the Panthers as a defensive assistant in 2022 and acquired a promotion to defensive high quality management coach after Evero’s arrival. His particular position within the workforce’s protection just isn’t identified, nevertheless it’s not shocking to see widespread modifications after the Panthers’ defensive struggles in the course of the common season.
Canales and Evero will spend the approaching weeks interviewing candidates to affix their employees and assist the Panthers protection bounce again from one of many worst statistical seasons in league historical past.
