Mr. Scot

That's potentially Kitchens or Chudzinski.

Pretty sure this is the only "Steve Wilks perma-coach" thread I've started.

Got curious and decided to look it up... Kitchens - 47 Chudzinski - 54 Scott Turner - 40 Cam Turner - 35 Zampese - 55 Wilson - 61 Nixon - 47 Proehl - 54 Henry - 50 Campen - 58 Kugler - couldn't find it but he ain't 65 Holcomb - 51 Mills III - 44 Rivera - 60 Pagano - 55 Walker - 61 Dishman - 57 Tabor - 51 For the record, Pasqualoni is 73. The only other guy who'd be in that range is pass rush specialist Don Johnson. Couldn't find his age but he's been coaching since 1977.

That's a genuine possibility. It's also true though that a lot of former head coaches like to step back and take lesser, low pressure jobs in the latter part of their careers. I could see Rivera doing that as well, especially to help out an old friend. And heaven knows he enjoyed living in Charlotte. (the city actually liked him and Mrs Riv pretty well too)

I didn't think of it till too late but there's another name I probably should have included among the potential secondary coaches. Former Panthers safety Mike Mitchell is currently an assistant Defensive Backs Coach with the Colts.

Possible, but if so, Pagano is a good choice.

Everybody but Pasqualoni, I think…

It’s a huge long shot, but I’d genuinely be excited to see what a staff like this could do.

So if Steve Wilks were able to land the permanent Panthers head coaching job,. what might a staff of his choosing look like? Looking back at some of Wilks’ prior connections and cross referencing with guys who are or might be available for a 2023 staff, here are some options: OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR Freddie Kitchens: Senior Offensive Analyst - University of South Carolina (lousy head coach but good OC; worked with Wilks in Cleveland) Rob Chudzinski: Special Assistant to the Head Coach - Boston College (acquainted from way back in their San Diego days; popular with Panther fans) QUARTERBACK COACH Scott Turner: Offensive Coordinator - Washington Commanders (Norv's son, and well acquainted with Wilks; available if Washington makes a change) Cameron Turner: Quarterback Coach - Arizona Cardinals (another member of the Turner family; worked with Wilks in Arizona) Ken Zampese: Quarterback Coach - Washington Commanders (not a direct Wilks acquaintance but has worked with Wilks buddy Ron Rivera) RUNNINGBACK COACH Kirby Wilson: Head Coach - Pittsburgh Maulers, USFL (was Wilks RB Coach in Arizona; an experienced runningback coach) Jeff Nixon: Runningbacks Coach - Carolina Panthers (he has more NFL experience than a lot of Rhule's other assistants) WIDE RECEIVERS COACH Ricky Proehl: Wide Receivers Coach - Saint Louis Battlehawks, XFL (Panther fans would sure love this) Adam Henry: Co-Offensive Coordinator - University of Indiana (long time NFL assistant; was with Wilks in Cleveland) TIGHT ENDS COACH Rob Chudzinski: Special Assistant to the Head Coach - Boston College (tight ends were always his specialty) Freddie Kitchens: Senior Offensive Analyst - University of South Carolina (also a long time TE Coach; he and Chudzinski could be interchangeable) OFFENSIVE LINE COACH James Campen: Offensive Line Coach - Carolina Panthers (he and Wilks also worked together in Cleveland) ASSISTANT OFFENSIVE LINE COACH Robert Kugler: Assistant Offensive Line - Carolina Panthers (Campen's protegé) DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR Al Holcomb: Defensive Coordinator - Carolina Panthers (he and Wilks go way back; was Wilks DC in Arizona too) DEFENSIVE LINE COACH Paul Pasqualoni: Defensive Line Coach - Carolina Panthers (he and Wilks apparently work well together but a change here wouldn't surprise me) Sam Mills III: Former Defensive Line Coach - Washington Commanders (Wilks could give him another shot) PASS RUSH SPECIALIST Don Johnson: Pass Rush Specialist - Carolina Panthers (was part of Wilks' staff in Arizona) LINEBACKERS COACH Ron Rivera: Head Coach - Washington Commanders (they also go way back; not hard to imagine Wilks giving Rivera a spot to land if he's fired) John Pagano: Outside Linebackers Coach - Denver Broncos (was with Wilks and Rivera in San Diego; might need a more...stable environment) SECONDARY COACH DeWayne Walker: Cornerbacks Coach - University of Arizona (Browns DB coach when Wilks was there) Cris Dishman: Defensive Coordinator - Las Vegas Vipers, XFL (worked with Wilks in San Diego; he's been out of the league for a while but it's a possibility) SPECIAL TEAMS COACH Chris Tabor: Special Teams Coordinator - Carolina Panthers (no real reason for a change here) ______________________________________________________________________________________________________ That's...not a bad looking staff, to be honest

I'd happily keep Wilks.

Likely a new everything... There are a few guys I could conceivably see staying from the current staff (Campen, Tabor, Wilks, Holcomb) but for the most part I think you're looking at turnover.

That's possible, and it'd kinda make sense if they were allowed to use what played to their strengths.

Pretty sure there were at least two or three threads about how we all wouldn't be allowed back on the bandwagon once Rhule took us to the playoffs. I mean, were people serious about that stuff?

Quinn's been speculated because of his connections to Fitterer and Morgan from their Seattle days. It's all still speculation at this point though. Tepper has stated they're not looking at anyone else until Steve Wilks has had a chance to make his case for the job. And this is one time where I can agree with him.

As Quinn scenarios go, I like this one better than the option of him picking one of his former colleagues like was discussed in the other thread. Ultimately though, it's still a "lesser of two evils" sort of thing.

Is it really that hard to believe? The players who have spoken up in favor of Rhule were either stars / leaders (McCaffrey, Burns) or Temple / Baylor guys (Anderson, Thompson, etc). Throw in that there was talk last year of players discussing things like "sending Rhule back to college". Do we really know how he's perceived by the roster as a whole?

Actually just said that

I'd rather get an offensive coach and a veteran DC. I could see someone suggesting Moore as head coach with Quinn as his DC, but I really don't think Moore has enough coaching experience to step into that role yet.

I'm not a fan, but it's a legit possibility so I'm looking at options.

FYI: I also pondered options like bringing along Cooper Rush as a stopgap QB and using a theoretical top pick to draft someone foundational to Quinn's defense (like Will Anderson Jr, for example) but opted to keep it simple.

So here's a different take than before, one I didn't include previously because it's...complicated, but one that could legitimately happen. Start again with Dan Quinn getting the Panthers job... Suppose also that Mike McCarthy gets fired by the Cowboys... Whether it's Sean Payton or someone else, McCarthy's replacement may want to hire his own staff (especially if it's Payton) even if Jerry Jones wants to retain some of "his guys". But either way, in this scenario, OC Kellen Moore is allowed to seek other opportunities. Dan Quinn then contacts Moore about joining him in Charlotte as the Panthers OC. And from thence we go... Would fans find this scenario more...palatable?

This is Hackett's staff, the first year they coached in the pros listed with them: OC Justin Outen - 2016 QB Coach Klint Kubiak - 2013 RB Coach Tyrone Wheatley - 2013 WR Coach Zach Azzanni - 2017 TE Coach Jake Moreland - 2021 OL Coach Butch Barry - 2015 Assistant OL Coach Ben Steele - 2014 DC Coach Ejiro Evero - 2011 DL Coach Marcus Dixon - 2021 LB Coach Peter Hansen - 2011 OLB Coach Bert Watts - 2012 DB Coach Christian Parker - 2019 ST Coach Dwayne Stukes - 2006 That doesn't necessarily tell the whole story as some had college or even high school coaching seasons before and between their pro seasons, but it gives you a rough idea. Several are doing their current jobs for the first time in their careers. Hackett does have longtime NFL coaches Dom Capers, Bill Kollar and Jerry Rosburg on staff as well, but all are in consultant type roles. Let's just say this is not the staff I pictured him building as a head coach. He seems to have deliberately sought after young, less experienced guys for reasons I can't possibly fathom.