Matt Rhule punished players on the Panthers offense for celebrating a touchdown in practice. Dec 19, 2021; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Carolina Panthers head coach Matt Rhule walks off the field following the game against the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports

As just about everyone around the NFL expected, the Carolina Panthers fired head coach Matt Rhule on Monday.

In two seasons and change, Rhule went 11-27 as coach of the Panthers and was never able to get the franchise back on track. He cycled through quarterbacks in an attempt to find out that works but Cam Newton, Sam Darnold, and Baker Mayfield were never able to remain consistent in a way that Carolina needed.

Rhule leaves Carolina with four years left on the seven-year contract he signed in 2020.

A highly successful coach in the world of college football, Rhule is expected to return to those ranks where he will be a hot commodity. In four years, he turned Temple into a program that won ten games in back-to-back seasons. He then rebuilt Baylor over the course of three seasons, getting them to 11 wins and a Sugar Bowl appearance in his third year.

Those rebuilding skills just didn’t pan out for Rhule in the NFL and now it looks like the experiment is over.

Per Adam Schefter, Panthers’ defensive pass game coordinator/secondary coach Steve Wilks will take over as Carolina’s interim head coach.

We’ll see who the Panthers hire to replace Rhule and begin yet another rebuild, but in the meantime news about his firing got the NFL world talking.

About Sean Keeley

Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Editorial Strategy Director for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.