PANTHERS COACHING STAFF -- WHO'S IN - WHO'S OUT

There is precious little information available at this time.  At least "OFFICIAL" information.  There are a couple of things we know for sure. ONE, Interim HC, Steve Wilks, will NOT be back for another stressful, and stress-filled, year. And TWO, new HC, Frank Reich, will take over Wilks' job. That's about all we know for sure.  Well.... There's one more thing. Because Wilks is gone, we (fans..??) will have to find another scapegoat to harass every time the Panthers lose a game.

Anyway, we are now almost through the first week of Reich's reign (a little alliteration there..). With his first actual "presser" happening tomorrow, maybe we will gain some insight into the direction the Panthers are taking.

Before that prestigious event happens, there are a couple of things worth noting. Panthers DC Al Holcomb will follow Wilks 'out the door' and will NOT be retained (so sayeth the soothsayers at Panthers Wire..). This, of course, is not a surprise, as Holcomb was a devotee of Wilks and probably would have caused at least some degree of consternation.

PANTHERS WIRE:  DC Holcomb To Follow Wilks 'Out The Door'

Another thing worth noting.... The Panthers have "wiped the board" clean on the official website. On the "Team" page, under the "Coaches" heading, there are absolutely none listed....other than new HC Frank Reich. That would seem to indicate that ALL "sub" coaching positions are up for grabs.

PANTHERS.COM:  FULL LISTING Of New Panthers Coaching Staff

Then we have the "unofficially official" statements made by the folks over at Panthers Wire quoting Joe Person at The Athletic.  Who we are led to believe is "in the know"...... Said information indicating that the Panthers are indeed going to retain ST Coordinator, Chris Tabor, and O-line Coach, James Campen.

PANTHERS WIRE:  Joe Person says.."???"  Panthers To Retain....

So, that's all we know at this time.  I suspect we will be hearing something more 'definite' shortly. It's almost a 'sure thing' ---- sort of..??

If any of you folks out there know anything for certain..... OR, if you just want to stir the pot.... Please hold forth.

Tabor n Campen were pitched in hc interviews as peices to keep. I guess Riech said ok. Good coaches. Ol n ST.

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Strengths last year.

Josh mentions an interesting point.  While HCs are normally allowed to choose their own staff and are expected to do so….. In this case, Reich was (apparently) encouraged to at least ‘consider’ keeping Campen and Tabor. Which we have to assume he is doing. This is an indication that the HMFICs in Pantherland are learning and gaining valuable information as time moves on.

We can only hope that this turns out to be a “true fact” as opposed to rampant rumor.

To continue this storyline.....

Vic Fangio, whom the Panthers had been looking at for a DC has been hired by the Miami Dolphins.  So that means that Fangio is now "OUT" of the running for a position with the Panthers. This is sort of "old news" and was mentioned here previously by 007.

Also, the Panthers had been looking at Cowboys OC Kellen Moore, first as a HC candidate. Moore fell by the wayside when Frank Reich was hired as the new Panthers HC.  Word now has it that Kellen Moore has left Dallas (mutually agreed..) and has now accepted another OC position with the Chargers.  So, Kellen Moore is now "OUT" of the running for any position here in Carolina.

You have to wonder what Frank Reich and the Panthers have in mind when it comes to a coaching staff. The longer these decisions get postponed, the fewer candidates are left.  I sort of expected Reich to move forward quickly with the Coordinators positions. The other coaches and assistants could be a little slower.  Still, there seems to be very little "hurry" involved with the selections.

Maybe the Panthers have something already tied up.....OR, at least an idea worthy of pursuit.  One can only hope......

After waiting a few days....

It now appears that Duce Staley is the first of the Panthers new coaching hires. There are no reports yet of "what" his job will be, but it seems most likely he will fill a slot like RB Coach, or Assistant something-or-other. Staley comes from the Detroit Lions where he was a RB Coach. Staley could have been stopped by Detroit from coming to Carolina because it was a "lateral move," however the Lions permitted it because Staley's mother is in poor health and lives close by in South Carolina.

The latest news seems to indicate that Jim Bob Cooter...(I'm not making that up..) is the next acquisition by the Panthers. (Reminds me of that classic one-liner..."....Yee Haw!!..Drive it like you stole it, Bobby Lee.!!")  Cooter is a good coach and may in fact become our new OC. His most recent assignment is as Passing Game Coordinator for the Jacksonville Jaguars. It would be a 'logical' transition for Cooter if he wanted to make a jump.  Have to wait and see what happens.

CAT SCRATCH READER:  Two Latest Coaching Candidates

OKAY..

This waiting around crap sucks...  By the time they make up their minds to "move", they'll be so constipated they can't...

As my Grandpappy used to say..... "Shit, or get off the pot."

Seriously...  

Hehe.