Carolina Panthers’ defensive coordinator answers to historic loss. What he said
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Sunday, the Carolina Panthers gave up a franchise-most 59 points against the Chicago Bears — a result that surprised most of the NFL given the Panthers’ mighty investment on that side of the ball this offseason.
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Thursday, defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero answered to the drubbing.
Evero, who arrived in Carolina in 2023 and has been the defensive play-caller through those seasons, told reporters Thursday that Week 1’s loss was a product of the defense not playing “the way we wanted.”
“There’s not a lack of confidence,” Evero said. “We didn’t play the way we wanted. There are a lot of areas we could coach better as well. We feel like there are a lot of things we can certainly improve on, and a lot of things we can correct, and that’s the goal.
“We know that at the end of the day, we’re trying to be playing our best at the end of the season. And every week that we take the field is an opportunity to get better and improve and grow, and that’s what we’re looking to do.”
It wasn’t just the fact that the Bears put up 59 points — the most allowed by any Panthers team in the franchise’s 32-year history. It was also how the Bears were so prolific. Chicago gained 552 total yards, and more than half of that — 291 yards — came from the run game.
The Bears notched six rushing touchdowns: three from running back D’Andre Swift, two from quarterback Caleb Williams, and one from running back Kyle Monangai.
Evero said there were “a lot of things” that contributed to the breakdown of the Panthers’ rush defense.
“We need to play our blocks better up front,” Evero said. “There are certainly things we could do better schematically. We got to get better conditioning. I think there are a lot of factors there, but we feel like they are all correctible.”
Evero employs a 3-4 system that has been successful in the past. He led a Top 10 defense in Denver when he was the defensive coordinator there in 2022, and his defense was the bright spot in a sea of darkness in the Panthers’ 2023 season.
In 2024, Carolina invested in the offense, and that came at the expense of the defense — letting talented players like Brian Burns, Frankie Luvu and Jeremy Chinn walk. That year, after Derrick Brown suffered a knee injury in Week 1 that made him miss the rest of the season, the Panthers allowed the most points in NFL history.
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In 2025, the defense improved to the middle of the pack statistically and made enough plays to keep the eventual-playoff-bound team in games. According to the Panthers’ game notes, the Panthers are 11-6 in one-score games since 2024, tied for fifth-best in winning percentage since that time. Seven of those one-score wins came in 2025 — and that’s a credit, in large part, to the defense.
With that, expectations rose ahead of 2026. What accelerated that was the front office’s acquisitions of big-name talent, such as pass rusher Jaelan Phillips and inside linebacker Devin Lloyd.
But then came Week 1, and a lot of doubt.
Evero spent Thursday taking accountability for the loss. Film study suggests that a huge cause for Sunday’s disappointment involves the defense’s front-seven; they failed to impede the path of runners and thus give safeties and corners the time to crash rushing lanes. This scheme, as head coach Dave Canales said Monday, puts a lot of pressure on the front-seven to perform — when they fail, the rest of the defense does, too.
But Evero didn’t mention any player or unit by name. He didn’t mention Derrick Brown, the Pro Bowl-caliber defensive lineman who incurred two costly penalties. He didn’t call out the defensive line. He didn’t even pin the blame on the newly established starters — of their newness to the system being a source of any shortcomings.
“Based on what we did in the spring and in training camp, we felt very good about where our guys were in terms of their knowledge of the package and all that,” Evero said. “So yeah, we just have to go out there and have a good plan for them and make sure we execute the plan at a high level. That’s what it really comes down to.”
He added: “I think it’s important that we don’t separate ourselves. Just because we’re coaches, we’re not above what happens on the field. We play a big part in it. Our hand is in it. I just want everybody to realize that we’re all in this together. Through good and through bad. And I just think the best show of leadership, sign of leadership, is, ‘Hey, I’m not always perfect. I’m not going to get every call right. I’m not going to get every plan right. But the effort’s always going to be there, I’m always going to learn. And if I do things well, that’s what I’m supposed to do, and then when I don’t do things well, I gotta find a way to correct it.’
“Just like that. And when I show that humility, I expect the same from them. And I think it’s been a great way of us working together.”
The Panthers face the Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta at 1 p.m. Sunday. Carolina doesn’t yet know who the team will face at quarterback; Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski told reporters Wednesday that he’s “not ruling anybody out” for Sunday. Atlanta quarterbacks Cooper Rush, Michael Penix and Tua Tagovailoa each showed up on the injury report Wednesday.
But, Evero said, “we will just focus on what we can control.”
“When things go well, I get a lot of praise, and when things don’t, I don’t. I get that part of it. And that’s fine,” Evero said. “But it doesn’t really matter. We just need to find a way to get better.”
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