The first of the Carolina Panthers players are set to arrive at Wofford College tomorrow. But head coach Matt Rhule was already in Spartanburg, S.C. Monday afternoon for his first training camp press conference.
Among other things, Rhule talked quarterback rep distribution, defensive growth and special teams acquisitions.
Here are the biggest takeaways from Rhule’s session with the media.
Rhule is ready to move on from last year
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Given that he ended the season on the proverbial “hot seat,” it’s easy to see why Rhule wants to move on from those bad moments as quickly as possible. When asked about how last season’s sore spots affect him today, he likened football seasons to golf rounds.
“Last year, to me, is over. It’s kind of like golf: you play a bad round and feel terrible about your game and then, all of a sudden, you show up the next day and you play golf again. I thought we did a lot of things well early in the year and then, down the stretch, I didn’t get it done—we didn’t get it done.”
The offense needs to establish its identity
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The Panthers are entering the 2022 season with two new quarterbacks on the roster: Baker Mayfield and Matt Corral. If Mayfield wins the starting spot, they’ll especially need a new offensive identity.
Rhule expressed his intention of figuring that out, and it could be more useful than it seems. Last season, the Panthers were ridiculed for testing out various two-passer approaches and seemingly calling plays at random (in other words, lacking an identity). With a revamped offensive line and improvement under center, Rhule hoped that would change in the new season.
“Offensively, we have to really establish our identity. A lot of that is personnel: we have to establish who our starters are on the offensive line, we have to establish the quarterback position and who our starting quarterback is, but we also have to establish the identity. We got a great start in OTAs, but we need to know who we are on offense.”
Rhule hasn’t yet discussed rep distribution with Mayfield and Darnold
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Although general manager Scott Fitterer recently said that the reps between Mayfield and Darnold would be split evenly throughout training camp, Rhule was less willing to disclose information. When asked, he said he…
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