Panthers Now Have Potential Coach Departure to Worry About After Latest News

The NFL has seen plenty of coaching changes to begin the offseason. The Carolina Panthers have been fortunate enough to retain head coach Dave Canales' staff so far, however, it appears as if that might change in the coming days.

Panthers Rumors: Jaguars Request Interview with Jonathan Cooley

On Tuesday afternoon, NFL insider Jeremy Fowler reported that the Jacksonville Jaguars have requested an interview with Panthers defensive pass coordinator Jonathan Cooley for their vacant defensive coordinator position.

The 2024 season marked Cooley's second with the Panthers. Unfortunately, Carolina struggled to defend the pass under his watch, allowing the 10th-most passing yards per game and eight-most yards per completion while finishing with the fifth-worst coverage grade (50.7) on Pro Football Focus.

Panthers fans are likely wondering how that performance warranted a DC interview. As it turns out, the opportunity likely stems from Cooley's connection with newly hired Jaguars head coach Liam Coen.

After all, the duo spent parts of two seasons together in the Los Angeles Rams organization. Cooley joined the team as a defensive assistant/quality control coach in 2020, which is when Coen was the assistant QB coach. The latter left in 2021 to join the Kentucky Wildcats as an offensive coordinator before returning to L.A. one year later in the same role, whereas Cooley was promoted to defensive backs coach by that point.

Sometimes coaches just don't work out with a team for whatever reason. The Panthers need a defensive pass-game coordinator who can do a better job at defending the air whereas Cooley could use a fresh start based on last season's result.

In other words, an offseason divorce might be the most mutually beneficial outcome.

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