Matt Rhule is officially out with the Carolina Panthers, and the reaction of one of his players tells you all you need to know how bad things had become in Charlotte.
Wide receiver Robbie Anderson, currently the team’s leading receiver, spoke about the coach’s firing with reporters on Thursday. Whereas most players will pay lip service to their connection with a departed coach or try to pull in some blame themselves, Anderson, who had also played for Rhule in college, had mostly shrugs.
Given that the Panthers are 1-4 and at the bottom of many NFL power rankings, including Yahoo Sports’, it’s hard to blame him.
The ping pong sounds in the background really make the video. It’s hard to create an adequate picture of the conversation with just Anderson’s words, so here’s our best attempt with some notes:
Anderson: “I don’t know, it is what it is.”
Reporter: “Did it harder for you with your background with him?”
Anderson: [5 second pause], [shakes head], “Nah. Business. You know? It is what it is.”
Reporter: “Tough business.”
Anderson: “Yeah, but we knew what we signed up for. That’s why you get paid a lot of money and get certain jobs, you know?”
Reporter: “Do you feel like, I know a lot of the players were really behind Rhule, you were one of them. Do you feel like the players let Matt down at the very end?
Anderson: [Shrugs shoulders], “I don’t really know. It’s Thursday night, that was current news on Monday. I wish him the best and all of that, you feel me?”
Anderson joined the Panthers in 2020 as one of the Panthers’ first free agent signings under Rhule. The signing was a reunion from their college days, as Anderson played under Rhule at Temple. Since then, Anderson has been a key field-stretcher for the Panthers, accruing 1,821 receiving yards across 38 games.
Unfortunately, that tenure also coincided with an 11-27 record, hence Rhule’s firing.
Former Arizona Cardinals head coach Steve Wilks, who had been working as the Panthers’ defensive passing game coordinator, has taken over as Carolina’s interim coach. He will get the unenviable task of steering a broken roster through the two remaining months of the NFL season.