Panthers coach Ron Rivera recently admitted his team needed to “evolve,” next season, after a disastrous drop-off from their run to the Super Bowl.
But that won’t include staff changes, at least ones that are Rivera’s decision.
The Panthers coach said he had no plans to make staff changes for next season.
“Remember, it’s the same group that was 15-1, same group that led the league in scoring,” Rivera said, via Bill Voth of Black and Blue Review. “And in the last five years, we’ve had a top-10 defense. So as I look it and break things down, yeah, there’s some things that we have to work on and change. You guys heard me talk about evolving. We have to.”
Of course, Rivera has gone into offseasons before saying he didn’t anticipate staff changes, only for changes to come. After the 2014 season, his special teams coach Richard Rodgers was re-assigned three weeks after the season. And with much of the scrutiny on an offense that failed to meet expectations, it’s still worth keeping an eye on offensive coordinator Mike Shula and quarterbacks coach Ken Dorsey.
Even though Rivera technically has final say over his coaching staff, General Manager Dave Gettleman and owner Jerry Richardson are always free to make suggestions.
