When former Carolina Panthers head coach Matt Rhule was still Carolina Panthers head coach Matt Rhule back in February, he hired Steve Wilks to lead his secondary. So, it’s not much of a surprise that he believes his replacement deserves a serious look.
On Tuesday, Rhule continued his return to the spotlight by joining the crew over on NFL Network’s Good Morning Football. When talking about Wilks, who is now Carolina’s interim head coach, Rhule said this of the man he referred to as a steadying force:
“Steve Wilks deserves to be a head coach,” Rhule said. “He’s a leader of men. If this league needs one thing, and if football needs one thing, it’s more diversity in the coaching hires, diversity in coaching searches. I think Steve has done a really nice job. I think that team, they’ve battled.”
Under Wilks, the Panthers have been surprisingly competitive. Even despite their 2-4 record since he took over in Week 6, Carolina has notched a pair of dominant division wins over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Atlanta Falcons and—most recently—stuck with the Baltimore Ravens through three and a half quarters this past Sunday.
So whether or not Wilks gets that “interim” label removed by 2023—for the Panthers or for another organization—you can add Rhule to his growing list of supporters.
