Panthers Reportedly Hiring Baylor's Matt Rhule as Next Head Coach
By Michael Luciano
Baylor head coach Matt Rhule is indeed making his long-awaited jump to the NFL, but it isn't with the team everyone was expecting he would join.
While Rhule was the favorite to become the next head coach of the New York Giants, he instead spurned them in favor of the Carolina Panthers, who wouldn't let him leave the building without a deal.
Sources: Baylor coach Matt Rhule finalizing a deal to become next coach of the Carolina Panthers.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) January 7, 2020
Carolina finished 5-11 this season, as Cam Newton's injury and the ineffective play of Kyle Allen and Will Grier saw Ron Rivera fired.
Rhule, a former offensive line coach with the Giants, was named the head coach at Temple in 2013, where he led the Owls to consecutive 10-win seasons after winning two games in his first year in charge. Rhule was hired by Baylor in the wake of the Art Briles scandal, and won just one game with the decimated Bears roster in 2017.
Rhule swiftly turned the Bears around, however, as he went from one win to seven in 2018, and then 11 wins plus a Sugar Bowl appearance in 2019. That expertise building a team up from nothing should come in handy in Carolina.
So the #Giants can't even get Matt Rhule. https://t.co/R3KnLgDz2b
— Jeff Kerr (@JeffKerrCBS) January 7, 2020
Much to the chagrin of Giants fans across the country, Rhule is now a Panther, and the master program builder will get his chance to rebuild Cam Newton in 2020.