The head coaching carousel slowed its spin a little over the playoff weekend. It’s still whirling through the interview process in a number of NFL cities, including Charlotte.
The Carolina Panthers are still searching for the successor to interim head coach Steve Wilks, who took over when Matt Rhule was fired early in the season. According to CBS Sports analyst Jonathan Jones, Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson has emerged as the favorite.
Johnson “has the lead” for the Carolina opening, Jones opined on the CBS Sports pregame show on Sunday. It’s worth noting Jones was a former Panthers beat writer.
This comes on the heels of a Q&A in The Athletic where longtime Panthers insider Joe Person noted of Johnson’s chances to land the Carolina gig,
The buzz in league circles is that Tepper is enamored with Johnson, whose innovative schemes helped the Lions finish fifth in the NFL in scoring offense and total offense in his first season as offensive coordinator. Johnson’s a sharp guy — with degrees from UNC in math and computer science — so you’d have to think he’s going to nail his interview this week.
Johnson will interview with Panthers owner Dave Tepper and GM Scott Fitterer this coming Wednesday. Johnson has already interviewed for the openings with the Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans, and neither job has yet been filled. Former Lions head coach Jim Caldwell has already interviewed for the Panthers job, too.
