3 long-term Frank Reich replacements who won't ruin Bryce Young
By John Buhler
The Carolina Panthers hiring Frank Reich as their head coach was one more the many George Oscar Bluth huge mistakes this moribund NFC South franchise made this past offseason. Reich was as cooked as a Thanksgiving turkey when he arrived in Charlotte. Owner David Tepper thought Reich had the secret sauce to get the most out of his new franchise quarterback. Instead, Tepper invested in spoiled milk.
Only in Charlotte is Frank an expletive. To say the Panthers are hot garbage should be taken as a compliment. They wish they could be hot garbage. Saddled with a 5-foot-something quarterback, no draft picks, no weapons and no head coach, you can safely say the Panthers are now between a rock and a hard place. Despite being in a division where everyone is below .500, Carolina looks pitiful.
So what is Tepper to do besides sell the team? He may be the new worst owner in the NFL, but there are only 32 of these jobs across the board. Yes, somebody is going to want to be the proud head coach of this train-wrecked 1-10 football team. Tepper is a billionaire, so he has made good financial decisions before. If he's smart, he should try to hire one of these ideal head-coaching candidates.
The only thing that matters right now is for Tepper to find himself Young's version of Doug Pederson...
3. Brian Johnson is the next smart offensive mind out of Philadelphia
It sounds strange to say, but there are fewer places in the NFL with a stronger track records of producing top-flight offensive minds in the game than Philadelphia. Since Jon Gruden served as an offensive coordinator there a generation ago, Philadelphia has been home to great play-callers like Andy Reid, Chip Kelly, Doug Pederson, Reich honestly at one point, Nick Sirianni and Shane Steichen.
With Steichen having early success in Indianapolis, that has us turning our attention to newly promoted offensive coordinator Brian Johnson of the Philadelphia Eagles. Johnson had been the Eagles' quarterbacks coach the two previous seasons, helping Philadelphia get the most out of Jalen Hurts' talent. His offenses shoot to thrill, as the Eagles play to kill with their delightful Brotherly Shove.
Young is a more talented, albeit smaller, version of Hurts. They both starred collegiately at Alabama. Johnson may be new on the scene in terms of getting serious NFL head-coaching opportunities, but Sirianni isn't going anywhere, so he is the next best thing. As long as the Eagles keep winning at a prolifically high level, I would envision that Johnson will become an NFL head coach before too long.
He may need to wait until 2025 to get his best shot at it, but the Panthers could help him skip the line.