As mixed reactions continue to trail the sack of Nigerian-born defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero by the American Football team, Carolina Panthers, an expert in the game has opined that it should have happened two years ago.
Sports247 reports that this scathing verdict came from a writer with Cat Crave online publication, Garrett Klaus, who reckoned that the Panthers waited too long before taking what he referred to as an inevitable decision.
Although he gave the 45-year-old Evero some accolades for stabilising the Panthers’ defence line at a point, Klaus reckoned that the former high school star should have been axed in 2024 when the Carolina Panthers brought in a new coach.
Klaus recalled that he was stunned when the National Football League (NFL) side gave Evero a new contract with improved terms after deciding to keep him under the new tenure, only to see their gamble backfire early in the new season.
A chain of implosions and apparently obvious lapses in The Panthers ultimately reached a climax of huge setbacks in their last two matches, and the team’s top brass eventually brought down the axe on Friday – which Klaus insists was long overdue.
He added in his piercing reaction to the development: “The Carolina Panthers finally moved on from defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero, ending a nearly four-year tenure that probably should have ended when Dave Canales took over as head coach in 2024.
“But while Evero certainly deserves criticism for how things unfolded, the Panthers’ front office deserves some blame here, too. When Carolina hired Canales in 2024, the organization had a chance to completely reset its coaching staff.
“Instead, it kept Evero from Frank Reich’s staff, doubled down on him after some historically bad defensive performances, and even handed him a contract extension earlier this year. Now, less than a season after that extension, the Panthers are right back where they could have been nearly three years ago.
Although Klaus admitted along those lines that some accolades go in favour of Evero, who was born to Nigerian parents in England but grew up in the United States, where he played American Football up to college level, he insists that sacking him was the right move.
Klaus submitted: “To be fair, keeping Evero around in 2024 wasn’t exactly an unpopular decision at the time. Despite Carolina’s disastrous 2-15 season under Reich and interim head coach Chris Tabor, Evero’s defense finished fourth in total yards allowed.
“He was also considered a respected defensive mind around the league, and Canales publicly supported keeping him when he arrived. But the results that followed made that decision increasingly hard to defend.
“Carolina finished dead last in scoring defense and total defense while allowing an NFL-record 534 points in 2024. The Panthers also surrendered 3,057 rushing yards, another indication of just how badly things had fallen apart.
“Ejiro Evero didn’t do enough to keep the Carolina Panthers’ belief. Instead, Carolina brought Evero back for 2025. While the defense improved considerably, finishing 15th in scoring defense and 16th in total defense, the Panthers ultimately rewarded that progress with another commitment to their defensive coordinator.
“Evero received a contract extension through 2027 following the season. Less than a year later, he’s out of a job. The numbers from Evero’s tenure tell a pretty concerning story. It’s not like everything Evero did was a failure, but the inability to consistently stop the run or get opposing offenses off the field became a recurring problem.”
Sports247 gathered further that the Panthers entered Week 8 this season in the NFL ranked last against the run and had allowed 12 games of at least 200 rushing yards since the beginning of the 2024 season.
