CHARLOTTE, N.C. — We're only four games into Matt Rhule's third season as head coach of the Carolina Panthers and it's safe to say things aren't going as planned.
After losing their 10th game in 11 tries Sunday against the Cardinals, the Panthers were booed off the field with fans taking over Bank of America Stadium with "Fire Matt Rhule" chants.
"When fans pay their money to come here, they deserve to see good football and better football than we played," Rhule said about Sunday's 26-16 loss to Arizona.
The losses keep piling up for Rhule, who is now 11-26 as head coach. Perhaps worse than Rhule's overall record, the Panthers are a dismal 5-18 coming off a loss. And with the San Francisco 49ers' stifling defense coming to town Sunday, it feels like Rhule and Baker Mayfield will need a huge performance to calm the waters of an angry fanbase.
When you begin to diagnose the Panthers' issues, it starts on offense. Simply put, Baker Mayfield has been bad. He's the league's lowest-rated starting quarterback through four weeks. This has led to speculation about Sam Darnold returning to the lineup once cleared from a high ankle sprain.
"Right now, it's Baker and it's PJ Walker," WFNZ's Kyle Bailey told WCNC Charlotte. "I get the sense that a lot of folks, even those who like PJ, know what he is, so it's going to be Baker Mayfield's chance to get it right and fix this offense."
There's a good argument that sticking with Rhule, at least for a few more weeks, is the right move. After all, the Panthers are only one game out of first in the NFC South and the team is still playing hard. But if Mayfield continues to struggle, Bailey believes things could go south in a hurry.
"Baker, to his credit, has owned up to bad quarterback play," Bailey said. "But owning it only goes so far, they've got to fix it. If this continues, Brian Burns can say the right things, Frankie Luvu can say the right things, but inside that locker room, there will be a pivot if this continues over the next few weeks."
With Rhule's job seemingly in jeopardy, some oddsmakers have already made hypothetical odds about who will lead the team in 2023. These odds are courtesy of Bookies.com.
Sean Payton (+400, 20% implied probability)
Payton is a familiar face for Panthers fans after a lengthy run as the Saints' head coach. Payton resigned after last season but said he would be interested in a return for the "right situation."
Whether Carolina checks those boxes remains to be determined, but there is a solid foundation with the current roster, particularly on defense. Payton and Drew Brees were an elite coach-quarterback combo for more than a decade, winning Super Bowl 44 in 2009.
Dan Quinn (+475, 17.4% implied probability)
Quinn is another former NFC South coach with good odds to become a head coach in 2023. Quinn, of course, was the Falcons coach for 28-3, and has been the defensive coordinator in Dallas since 2021.
He has helped mold Micah Parsons into an elite pass rusher and would be a great fit with Brian Burns and Carolina's personnel. He reportedly interviewed for multiple head coaching vacancies in 2022, and is expected to be a hot name this offseason.
Matt Rhule (+600, 14.3% implied probability)
With all the talk being about Rhule being fired, there's a decent chance he stays put. Two of the Panthers' three losses came on late field goals, plus he's only in year three of a seven-year contract, not to mention Tepper is reportedly planning to be patient with Rhule.
As long as the team continues to fight on the field and is competitive, don't be surprised if Rhule sticks around for another year. There's still time to turn this season around despite a 1-3 start.
Ron Rivera (+1500, 6.3% implied probability)
Yeah, this one probably won't happen. But it's funny. Rivera is currently in the midst of a down period in Washington and could be looking for a new job after this season, but I wouldn't expect a Carolina homecoming for Riverboat.
Dabo Swinney (+2250, 4.3% implied probability)
Not quite the longest odds on the list (that's Matt Campbell at +2500), Dabo Swinney's name sometimes pops up in these hypothetical odds for NFL jobs. Given Swinney's past comments on college football becoming a little too much like the pros, don't plan on Dabo leaving his gig at Clemson for a Sunday job.
Also, Dabo is making north of $10 million and just signed a contract extension with Clemson. Never say never, but yeah ... not going to happen.
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