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

The Carolina Panthers‘ season has gone off the rails. Following their 32-6 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, the team fell to 5-10 on the season. Splitting quarterback duties between Cam Newton and Sam Darnold hasn’t been effective and doesn’t seem as though head coach Matt Rhule has an answer on how to turn things around.

That said, he does have a very unique vision for the future of the franchise, and who he would compare to the Panthers.

“I believe it’s 1000 percent working, I just know no one can see it and I apologize,” said Rhule. “As I tell our team all the time, it took Jay-Z seven years. He had to start his own agency to become an overnight sensation. It takes time.”

The quote starts with an absurd notion (it’s working for sure even though you can tell it’s not working), then backs into a decent idea (these things take time) before veering back into the land of the absurd (The Carolina Panthers are like Jay-Z and it might take seven years to be a winner).

As you might imagine, NFL Twitter had some thoughts on the quote and comparison.

While Rhule was a big hit in college football, his NFL stint so far has been a disaster. After a 5-11 initial season with Carolina last year, he’s looking likely to finish in roughly the same spot this time as well. And there does not appear to be a clear solution at quarterback or elsewhere.

Rhule may want to consider keeping his long-term metaphors to himself while he tries to figure out how to win more than five games in a season if he even gets another season to do so.

[Nick Carboni]

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.