They did not beat the Cardinals. Mayfield threw two picks, they were 2-of-12 again on third down; it was getting rough, and the 49ers were rolling in the next week. It didn’t get better. Mayfield threw another pick, and another 3-of-15 on third down. At this point, it’s a trend. Making matters worse, the 49ers fans in the stands stood out in their high-contrast red jerseys, and the locals who were there were angry. And Mayfield was hurt late.
The next day, it was time for a change. Time had run out on the Matt Rhule experiment after an 11-27 record during his time. Wilks was named interim head coach.
“A lot of time has passed here,” Tepper said on Oct. 10. “We have the record we have; there are different reasons that go into that. I think there has been progress of some sort, but we’re just not getting over the hump. And we’ve got to get over the hump.”
Tepper also referenced the use of resources (chasing quarterbacks had cost dollars and a lot of draft picks, and the Panthers only had nine of those the next two years at that moment) and the structure of the organization, saying he’d probably look for more “balance” between the coach and GM next time.
The next day, Wilks got his chance to talk about what was next, and there were a few common themes. One, there was no B-S; he was here to try to win some games and thought they had a chance to do so. Two, he made it clear he didn’t accept the premise that things were never good here since he was part of a staff that won three straight division titles from 2013-15. The fact the 2014 team won the division at 7-8-1 also served as an object lesson, an unsubtle reminder that 1-4 wasn’t necessarily insurmountable. But while Wilks didn’t make a big deal out of his Charlotte roots or his background, he did bring another message with him that day.
“It means a lot to me; it means a lot to this organization,” Wilks began. “It’s just like anything; when you come to an organization, it has to be taught, it has to be understood. This is our mantra; this is what we’re about.
“Yes, we do have a lot of young guys, but we’re at the point in our season that it’s about Keep Pounding. In order for us to turn this around, that’s the mindset that we have to have.”
They did not immediately begin.
The first game was in Los Angeles, against a Rams team that hadn’t fulfilled its hard-luck mission of the year. They appeared to be still good. And the Panthers were without their starting quarterback.
Mayfield tried to work out the Friday before…
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