Panthers fired Ejiro Evero, but the defense's numbers point to a run-stopping hole, not a broken system

The Panthers fired defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero the day after a 27-19 loss at Green Bay that dropped them to 3-4. He is the first NFL coordinator fired this season, and the move reads like a coaching fix. The defense's numbers say the problem is narrower than that, and a new voice will not solve it on a short week.

A split, not a collapse

Carolina allows 27.6 points per game, which ranks sixth most in the league. Total defense sits in the bottom third. Look inside that and the picture changes: the run defense ranks at or near the bottom, while the pass defense ranks ninth.

A broken scheme usually leaks everywhere. This one leaks in one place. Expected points added per play allowed is +0.03, close to break-even, which describes a defense that is below average on a snap-by-snap basis but not a disaster. The points total looks worse than the per-play number, and that gap is worth asking about before pinning it all on the man calling the plays.

The Packers game fit the pattern. Jordan Love piled up passing yards, but Green Bay's ground game was contained, according to NFL.com. The weakness that drove the season was not the one that showed up Thursday.

The case against Evero

None of this clears him. NFL.com notes his units never ranked better than 15th in points allowed and finished last in 2024. That year Carolina gave up 3,057 rushing yards, or 179.8 per game, the first defense over 3,000 since 1980.

A run problem that large in 2024 and still among the league's worst now is a fair charge against the person in charge of fixing it. Two seasons is enough time to change a front, a gap assignment, a tackling emphasis or the players asked to execute them. If none of that took, the coordinator owns part of the result.

What Todd Wash changes

Defensive line coach Todd Wash takes over as interim coordinator and play-caller, with 10 days to prepare for Denver on Nov. 8. He ran Jacksonville's defense from 2016 to 2020, and the 2017 Jaguars ranked second in the league. That résumé matches the need: a line coach who has called a top defense is a logical choice when the run defense is the sore spot.

The limit is time and talent. Wash gets one extra week and the same players. If the front still cannot hold the line of scrimmage, the problem sits in the roster, and a different play sheet will not move the run numbers much.

The test

The measure for Wash is simple. Watch the yards per carry and rushing totals against Denver, not the final score. A better run defense with the same players would show that scheme and calls mattered. The same numbers with a new coordinator would put the pressure back on Dan Morgan's roster and Dave Canales' staff, who made this call together.