Things really falling apart in Charlotte as rumors fly about coach, franchise

The Carolina Panthers were handled easily 36-14 at home by a team coached by their former head coach John Fox.

At 2-7 during a year some thought the Panthers would at least contend for a division title, the rumors are flying.

Tom Sorensen of the Charlotte Observer writes, “Despite the rumors, the Panthers aren’t going to Los Angeles. But they are headed toward the bottom of the standings. It’s as if they have a standing reservation. They finally won a game last week but whatever momentum they hoped to generate faded Sunday after another Denver sack or another Peyton Manning completion, another Carolina turnover or another Panthers’ special teams error.”

Dave Friedman, a sports columnist, writes, “the guy that got fired leading to Rivera’s hiring beat the Panthers in every way possible. John Fox, who was unemployed for about for about five minutes when the Broncos scooped him up, reminded Panthers fans and management that sometimes the status quo beats the unknown.”

The Panthers are 8-17 without a win over a team with a winning record since Ron Rivera took over as coach.

Friedman adds, “Fox, who took over George Seifert’s 1-15 mess and two years later was in the Super Bowl with Jake Delhomme leading the way, is now 15-11 with the Broncos including a playoff win with Tim Tebow at QB.”

Rivera may be gone as the Panthers coach at the end of the season but some are calling for the ouster now. Even though the odds aren’t great, the bigger issue may be whether or the Panthers will even be around.

California political officials have been courting Panthers owner Jerry Richardson to move the team to Los Angeles. Richardson says he’s committed to keeping the Panthers in Charlotte because of his connections to North and South Carolina. ESPN is reporting that a source close to Richardson, however, that if Charlotte balks at helping him with some of the stadium renovations the Panthers have been wanting, it could happen.

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