Tracy Smith – Syndication Server

New Panthers STC Tracy Smith praises his unit’s toughness

Panthers special teams coordinator Tracy Smith spoke about the toughness and spirit of his unit.

New Carolina Panthers special teams coordinator Tracy Smith hasn’t been around his guys long, but he already knows what he’s got to work with.

Smith, while in the fourth day of the offseason workout program, spoke with reporters earlier this afternoon. He was asked how he thinks he can build around the core group of special teamers in his first season for Carolina.

“A really tough group,” Smith said in describing the players. “Physical, fast, tough group. Met ’em throughout this week. And guys that care about the game. I’ve known Johnny Hekker on and off for years and years. Had some nightmare plays against Johnny—like 2012-ish, or ’13. JJ [Jansen]—every year that I’ve been in, he’s been in. So have some relationship with those guys, also a little bit with Eddy [Piñeiro] as well.

“But this was not an underperforming group. This is a good group of guys. Expect them to keep their level of intensity and play the same. And the spirit from all of them has been great.”

Smith was hired back on Feb. 8. He comes in with 15 years of NFL experience—with stops for the Seattle Seahawks, the Cleveland Browns, the San Francisco 49ers, the then-Oakland Raiders and the Houston Texans.

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14 pending defensive free agents with ties to the Panthers’ coaching staff

Pro Bowl pass rusher and pending free agent Josh Allen has an early connection with a member of the Carolina coaching staff.

Unlike their staff on offense, the Carolina Panthers didn’t need to touch their defensive coaches going into 2024. But that doesn’t mean they don’t have connections to a few intriguing free agents.

Here are 14 pending defensive free agents, in areas of need, who have ties to Carolina’s coaching staff:

Who’s out and who’s in for the Panthers’ 2024 coaching staff

Now that the Panthers’ 2024 coaching staff is in place, let’s survey the damage.

The Carolina Panthers put the bow on their new coaching staff this afternoon.

As announced on Thursday, the team has hired five new coaches and retained 13 more. Per the official release, the moves have now rounded out the sideline staff for the upcoming season.

So, what did the turnover ultimately look like in the end?

Here are the coaching positions that underwent a change for Carolina going into 2024:

Panthers name Tracy Smith as new ST coordinator

The Panthers have hired another familiar face to HC Dave Canales.

Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales has brought on another familiar face to help establish his culture.

As announced by the organization on Thursday afternoon, Tracy Smith has been hired as the new special teams coordinator. The Panthers, in the same release, also made the hire of offensive coordinator Brad Idzik and the return of defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero official.

Smith, most recently, worked as an assistant special teams coach for the Seattle Seahawks. His 15 years of NFL service also include stops with the Cleveland Browns, the San Francisco 49ers, the then-Oakland Raiders and the Houston Texans—for whom he served as special teams coordinator for in 2020.

The Beaumont, Texas native shared a sideline with Canales in 2021 and 2022, when Canales served as the passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the Seahawks.

He will now replace the role previously held by Chris Tabor, who also stepped in as the team’s interim head coach for the final six games of the 2023 campaign.

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Panthers announce they have retained DC Ejiro Evero for 2024 season

The Panthers officially announced that they will be retaining DC Ejiro Evero for the 2024 season.

Now we definitely know that the Carolina Panthers are keeping the brains of their defense around.

As announced by the team on Thursday, defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero will be retained for the 2024 campaign. News of the decision first leaked out on Monday morning, courtesy of Joe Person of The Athletic.

The 43-year-old interviewed for three different head-coaching opportunities this offseason, including the vacancy for his Panthers. Carolina ultimately opted for now-former Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Dave Canales, who heaped a tremendous amount of praise on Evero during his introductory press conference last week.

“Oh my gosh, just the respect factor that I have goin’ against him—I know the scheme goin’ against it, I’m really excited to learn more about the ins and outs as far as how the calls come in, the adjustments and all that,” Canales said. “I just know it was really difficult on me for years—whether it was in Seattle goin’ against the Rams and that family, or this year goin’ against EJ twice.

“And this is really important for me, especially as a first-time head coach. I’m here to make sure we get our football right, especially on the offensive side. That we have that continuity with the players. With EJ, just bein’ able to have the mentality that I saw that was really challenging to play against.”

Evero, in his first season on the job for Carolina, headed the unit that allowed the fourth-fewest yards in the NFL.

The Panthers, in the same announcement from this afternoon, named Brad Idzik as their offensive coordinator and Tracy Smith as their special teams coordinator.

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Panthers 2024 coaching staff tracker

Who’s out and who’s in for the Panthers’ reconstructed coaching staff? Keep it here for the latest.

The turnover has begun.

Less than a week after the Carolina Panthers named Dave Canales their new head coach, the organization started up the reconstruction of their staff. The opening additions came on Tuesday—with the hirings of a handful of offensive assistants.

So, before we all get lost in the shuffle, keep it here as we track who’s in (and who’s out) from the Carolina sideline.

Panthers reportedly interview Bills assistant for STC job

Per ESPN, the Panthers have interviewed Buffalo’s Cory Harkey for their special teams coordinator job.

Perhaps the Charlotte-to-Buffalo pipeline could run back the other way, too.

According to ESPN senior NFL reporter Jeremy Fowler, the Carolina Panthers have interviewed Buffalo Bills assistant special teams coordinator Cory Harkey for their special teams coordinator job.

Harkey, a former tight end, cracked into the NFL in 2012 as an undrafted free agent for the then-St. Louis Rams. The Chino Hills, Calif. native and UCLA product ended up playing five seasons in the league, recording 27 receptions for 215 yards and three touchdowns.

His coaching career began in 2019, as a tight ends coach at Azusa Pacific University. He also went on to Tennessee State University in 2021 for the same role.

The NFL came calling back last season, when Harkey was hired as the Bills’ assistant special teams coach.

In addition to Harkey, Carolina has also reportedly expressed interest in Seattle’s Tracy Smith for their special teams coordinator opening—made vacant by the departure of Chris Tabor.

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Report: Dave Canales expected to add coaches from Buccaneers, Seahawks

Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Panthers HC Dave Canales is expected to bring in some help from Tampa Bay and Seattle.

Unlike their assembly of this past year’s coaching staff, the Carolina Panthers are seemingly going to allow new head coach Dave Canales to bring in his own people for his own vision.

ESPN senior NFL insider Adam Schefter dropped a handful of nuggets about the Panthers on Saturday night, including a hint towards who Canales could be hiring as part of his sideline crew. He wrote the following:

Canales already is scoping out which Buccaneers assistant coaches he can add to the Panthers’ staff, and according to sources, some are expected to make the move within the NFC South Division from Tampa Bay to Carolina.

Canales also is expected to reach back to his days with the Seahawks to pluck away some former Seattle assistant coaches. Two who are likely to join the Panthers are Pete Carroll’s son, Nate Carroll, who works as the Seahawks’ senior offensive assistant coach, and former Seahawks assistant special teams coach Tracy Smith, according to sources.

Carolina has already made headway into those parts. The Panthers have reportedly requested an interview with Smith for their special teams coordinator job and with Buccaneers wide receivers coach Brad Idzik for their offensive coordinator job.

The organization has also reportedly parted ways with the men who occupied those roles in 2023—Thomas Brown and Chris Tabor.

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Panthers reportedly request interview with Seahawks’ Tracy Smith for STC job

The Panthers’ search for a new special teams coordinator has begun.

The Carolina Panthers have begun the search for their next special teams coordinator.

According to Mike Kaye of The Charlotte Observer, the team has requested permission to interview Seattle Seahawks assistant special teams coach Tracy Smith for their new opening. The position was made vacant earlier this evening with the Panthers reportedly choosing not to retain Chris Tabor for a third season.

Smith has 15 years of NFL coaching experience. In addition to Seattle, he has picked up stops in Cleveland, San Francisco, Oakland and Houston—where he was the special teams coordinator in 2020.

The Beaumont, Texas native shared a sideline with new Panthers head coach Dave Canales in 2021 and 2022, when Canales served as the passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the Seahawks.

Along with Smith, the Panthers have also reportedly requested permission to speak with two candidates for their offensive coordinator job—Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receivers coach Brad Idzik and Philadelphia Eagles senior offensive assistant Marcus Brady.

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Seahawks announce 3 additions to coaching staff

The Seattle Seahawks have now formally announced three new additions to the coaching staff: Carl Smith, his son Tracy, and DeShawn Shead.

The Seattle Seahawks have announced the hiring of three assistant coaches. The additions were first reported earlier this week by The Athletic.

Former Seahawks defensive back DeShawn Shead will be taking on the role of defensive assistant/defensive backs coach. This marks Shead’s first coaching job in the NFL.

Another familiar name is Carl Smith, who was previously with Seattle from 2011-2018, when he spent seven seasons as the quarterbacks coach and one as the associate head coach. He returns to the associate head coach position after two years with the Houston Texans.

Smith’s son Tracy has also been added to the staff as assistant special teams coach. He held the position of special teams coordinator with the Texans last year.

Finally, Larry Izzo has been promoted to special teams coordinator after assuming the role midway through last season.

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