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The Carolina Panthers will hire ex-Colts head coach Frank Reich as their head coach, per Adam Schefter. Reich was let go by Jim Irsay and the Colts after a poor start to the 2022 season. He will now move on to Carolina to guide a Panthers team that played well under interim head coach Steve Wilks after they fired head coach Matt Rhule during the season.
Former Colts’ HC Frank Reich is being named the new head coach of the Carolina Panthers. Reich now returns to the franchise he quarterbacked in 1995.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 26, 2023
Reich was the Panthers first ever quarterback when they became an expansion team in 1995, where had three starts and no wins. After a Week 4 bye week, Reich was replaced by Kerry Collins. Of course, Reich was never a true starting quarterback and didn’t really shine until he got into the coaching ranks.
The pinnacle, so far, for Reich was as the offensive coordinator of the Eagles, who led the league in points scored and beat the Patriots in the Super Bowl. That win led him to become the Colts head coach, which had a great Andrew Luck at the helm, at least for one season. But, even with Luck retiring after one season with Reich, the Colts still managed winning records while being in quarterback hell.
Reich managed a 40-33-1 record with Sam Ehlinger, Matt Ryan, Carson Wentz, Philip Rivers, Jacoby Brissett, Brian Hoyer, and Andrew Luck as his starters, and we know Ryan and Rivers were on their last legs.