Panthers' Frank Reich says he'll start as offensive play-caller, hand over those duties eventually

Reich also praised his new coaching staff

Frank Reich was named head coach of the Carolina Panthers this offseason, and he already has an idea of how he will manage his coaching staff. Reich said that at first, he does not want to name an offensive play-caller, meaning he will take on that role himself.

Reich said he does plan on giving that job to another coach on his staff eventually, but to start it will be all him.

"There is gonna be some point that I'm gonna pass it off," Reich said (via NFL.com). "I know that's gonna be hard. I've been laughing, I've laughed with [new offensive coordinator] Thomas [Brown] about that already. I said, 'I'm gonna pass it off at some point! I don't know when!' I think there'll be a time and a place, and I think it will become apparent when that is."

He continued to explain the reasons for his choice, saying he wants to use his own experience to make the calls at first.

"But I think the right thing for me to do for our team and for our offense right now is for me to kind of use my experience there. ... I'll lean heavily on Thomas [Brown]. I can already tell. It's been a couple days, and I've already leaned on him hard on a couple things. I had a long meeting with him this morning, and I felt wisdom, conviction, strength. So that relationship is gonna be really good."

Reich expressed high praise for his assistants, noting that their extensive and very different experiences will be something he leans on going forward.

"Just a diversity of thought," Reich said regarding his staff. "Guys with that kind of experience have been in a bunch of different systems, they've been through the wars, they've been through the ups and downs, they've learned how to solve problems, they've learned how to work with players of all types, work through issues -- it's a long season. Guys who know how to collaborate together, work through issues as a staff, as a team. Strong conviction, but no egos. I think experience brings that."

The Panthers have Brown as offensive coordinator, former Miami Dolphins assistant head coach and quarterbacks coach Jim Caldwell as a senior assistant, and former Denver Broncos defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero as Carolina's new DC.

Caldwell, who competed with Reich for the head coaching job, is currently focused on "doing the absolute best job for this organization at this particular point in time," explaining that he is not looking too far in the future.

"I don't plan on being a head coach from this point forward," Caldwell said (via ESPN), "My focus is on doing the absolute best job for this organization at this particular point in time, and I don't look any further."

Reich comes in after Matt Rhule was fired during the 2022 season. Reich was also fired during the season after the Indianapolis Colts struggled. Reich has five years experience as a head coach, with two playoff appearances in that time.

The Panthers are certainly in need of some changes. They have not had a winning season since 2017, which was also the year of their last playoff appearance.