In Charlotte, Scott Fowler wrote he never heard boos at the Panthers home opener “like these.” They “came so early and so often, from a fan base so angry at a home team that doesn’t score touchdowns and doesn’t throw the ball deep but does enjoy a 2-yard pass on third-and-8.” The Panthers lost to the Chargers 26-3, and it “felt like a late-in-the-season bloodbath, one where a coach was about to get fired and a quarterback about to get benched.” But this was only Week 2, and it was the first game the Panthers had played at home ( CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 9/15 ).
FUTURE UNKNOWN : In Newark, Darryl Slater asked with the Giants falling to 0-2, could coach Brain Daboll “get canned before this season ends?” That is now a “legitimate question,” because it “sure looks like Daboll faces an uphill battle to even keep his job for 2025.” Giants co-owner John Mara wanted to see “significant improvement” from this team in 2024, coming off a 6-11 mess. Slater: “So much for that.” If Mara decides to ditch Daboll and GM Joe Schoen -- “either during or after this season -- he will be 0 of 6 on his most recent coach and GM hires.” He previously “whiffed” on Ben McAdoo, Pat Shurmur, and Joe Judge among coaches and missed on Dave Gettleman in the GM seat ( Newark STAR-LEDGER, 9/16 ).
