Carolina Panthers fire assistant coaches Paul Pasqualoni, Evan Cooper

Following the Carolina Panthers‘ Week 9 blowout versus the Cincinnati Bengals, interim head coach Steve Wilks and the team have opted to part ways with assistant coaches Paul Pasqualoni and Evan Cooper.

The firings are not the first since Matt Rhule, and they may not be the last. Defensive coordinator Phil Snow and assistant special teams coach Ed Foley exited immediately after Wilks took over for Rhule.

Pasqualoni, the defensive line coach, and Cooper, the defensive backs coach, were closely tied to Rhule. Cooper, Snow and Foley worked for the dismissed head coach at both Temple and Baylor. Pasqualoni and Rhule have been close friends since the former’s tenures at Syracuse and UConn.

Cooper was part of Matt Rhule’s original Carolina staff from the 2020 season while Pasqualoni joined the team this offseason.

According to the Panthers.com report, defensive assistant Bobby Maffei will take added responsibilities with the defensive backs moving forward. Interim defensive coordinator Al Holcomb will play a more prominent role as well.

Pass rush specialist Don Johnson and assistant defensive line coach Terrance Knighton will coach the defensive linemen.

Baker Mayfield leads Panthers in second half on Sunday

Baker Mayfield returned to the field for the Panthers on Sunday, starting the second half of the Week 9 game.

The change was made after the Panthers’ complete collapse in the first half against the Cincinnati Bengals. The first half was so bad for Carolina that Cincinnati had more points (35) than the Panthers had total offensive yards (32).

PJ Walker, the starter coming into the game, finished the first half 3-of-10 for nine yards. Mayfield was the starter for the first several games of the season, but a poor start to the season forced the Carolina staff’s hand to make a change on offense.

On his first drive in the game, the former Heisman Trophy winner marched the Panthers right down the field and into the red zone before throwing a touchdown pass to tight end Tommy Tremble.

Mayfield finished the game 14-for-20 with 155 passing yards and two touchdowns. The Panthers ultimately lost 42-21.