In an offseason that started with seven NFL head coaches getting fired, Ron Rivera will not be the eighth.
After meeting today with Panthers owner Jerry Richardson, Rivera has been informed that he will remain the head coach for 2013, the team confirmed.
In his first year as the Panthers’ coach in 2011, Rivera showed a lot of promise as a young team coming off a bad season went a respectable 6-10, led by a spectacular rookie season from quarterback Cam Newton. However, doubt started to emerge about whether Rivera was safe when the Panthers got off to a disappointing start in 2012, and by the time the Panthers fell to 2-8, there was a great deal of talk around the NFL that Rivera could be out.
The Panthers’ late-season rally to a 7-9 finish may have been enough to give Rivera a third year. Suffice to say, 7-9 won’t be good enough in 2013, if Rivera wants more than one more year as the Panthers’ head coach.