Few people in this league know how Frank Reich functions like Doug Pederson does. And on Tuesday, he told us why the Carolina Panthers are lucky to have him.
During his media availability at the 2023 Scouting Combine, the Jacksonville Jaguars head coach spoke a little bit about the new Panthers head coach—who, in addition to being his good friend, was his first-ever NFL offensive coordinator.
“I’m just happy and thrilled for Frank and his family,” Pederson said. “He means a lot to me. Obviously, he helped me win a championship in Philadelphia. And I knew it wouldn’t be long. He’s a great coach, he’s a great mentor, he’s a great teacher. He played this game for a long time. So, just excited to get him outta our division and get him in Carolina.”
Before getting into that AFC South division, Reich served as the Eagles offensive coordinator from 2016 to 2017—a successful two-year stint capped off by a Super Bowl LII victory over the New England Patriots. Reich would then be hired as the Indianapolis Colts head coach—where he’d eventually battle against Pederson’s Jaguars twice in 2022.
Pederson, also a (very brief) member of Carolina’s inaugural squad in 1995, was then asked why Reich is so good at working with the quarterback position.
“He played it,” he replied. “He understands the mentality, he understands the mindset of a quarterback. And sometimes, that’s what it takes. He played this game, he played it as a backup—like I did for so many years. I think there’s a mentality there that you can really pass on to quarterbacks, and he’s got a really good feel for that.”
Hopefully for the Panthers, Reich will have a really good feel for an answer under center—one they may end up actually finding this week in Indy.
