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Carolina Panthers to give Perry Fewell an official interview

By Luke Tucker

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - DECEMBER 22: Interim head coach Perry Fewell of the Carolina Panthers watches from the sidelines during the first quarter of the game against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium on December 22, 2019 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Bobby Ellis/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - DECEMBER 22: Interim head coach Perry Fewell of the Carolina Panthers watches from the sidelines during the first quarter of the game against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium on December 22, 2019 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Bobby Ellis/Getty Images) /
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Christmas came early for Perry Fewell as the Carolina Panthers announced he would get an interview for the head-coaching vacancy.

On Christmas Eve, David Tepper and the Carolina Panthers made it known that Perry Fewell will be getting an official interview for the Panthers’ head-coaching job. Fewell has been Carolina’s interim head coach since Ron Rivera was fired on December 3rd. Over that span, the Panthers have lost all three games and have been outscored 102-56.

Like Rivera, Fewell’s background is on the defensive side of the ball.

Before coming to Carolina this offseason, Fewell had spent more than two decades as a coach in the NFL, working on the defensive side of the ball each year. During the early going of the 2019 season, Fewell had the Panthers’ secondary playing among the best in the league, and made James Bradberry look like a lockdown cornerback. Seemingly everywhere he has gone, his units have performed well.

Other stops in Fewell’s coaching career in the NFL include the Jaguars (twice), Rams, Bears, Giants, and Redskins. He served as the defensive coordinator during the Giants’ 2011 Super Bowl season, and was part of the 2017 Jaguars team that nearly knocked off New England for a trip to the Super Bowl.

The Panthers are 0-3 so far under Fewell’s watch.

Since taking over for Rivera prior to the Week 14 matchup against Atlanta, Fewell’s Panthers have yet to win a game. Carolina is 0-3 since the firing, and any slim playoff hopes the Panthers had have been dashed. As mentioned earlier, Carolina has been outscored by 46 points over that time frame, and most games have looked worse than the final scores have indicated.

One of the biggest developments of the North Carolina native’s “tenure” has been the quarterback change. Kyle Allen started the 12 games prior to Sunday’s loss against the Colts, in which rookie Will Grier made his first NFL start. Grier completed 27 of 44 passes for 224 yards and three interceptions. His development over the next week and offseason could be key in Carolina’s plans moving forward. Sunday will mark both Grier’s and Fewell’s final in-season audition of 2019 when the Panthers take on the NFC South champion Saints in Charlotte.

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