Panthers hire former Cardinals head coach Steve Wilks for second stint with organization
Wilks spent six years with Carolina from 2012 through 2017
By
Jared Dubin
•
1 min read
The Carolina Panthers are bringing in a familiar face to help their defense. The Panthers announced on Wednesday that they've hired Steve Wilks as their defensive pass game coordinator and secondary coach.
His first run with the organization came from 2012 through 2017. He was the team's defensive backs coach from 2012 through 2014. He was promoted to assistant head coach for the 2015 and 2016 seasons and was given the title of defensive coordinator in 2017.
It was then that he got his first head-coaching opportunity, with the Arizona Cardinals. That stint lasted only one year, though, as he was fired and replaced with Kliff Kingsbury. Wilks then moved onto the Cleveland Browns as their defensive coordinator for a year before he was not retained under new head coach Kevin Stefanski. Last season, Wilks was the defensive coordinator at the University of Missouri.
Carolina's defensive pass game coordinator for the last two seasons was Jason Simmons, but he was hired as part of the new staff with the Las Vegas Raiders.
