What Frank Reich said after Carolina Panthers’ blowout loss to Detroit Lions
The Carolina Panthers remain the only winless team in the NFL after their uninspired 42-24 loss to the Lions on Sunday at Ford Field in Detroit.
The Charlotte-based franchise is now 0-5 for the fourth time in the team’s history. That includes the team’s inaugural season in 1995, as well as in 1998 and 2010.
Here are the highlights of what head coach Frank Reich had to say afterward:
Communication mistakes with Bryce Young, offense
“Obviously it’s a tough environment to play in. You know, there were still too many plays in which the communication was not at the level it needed to be at, we’ll have to go back and continue to work on those things. I thought we had a good week of practice, working some of those things out. At times today, it was very good and very smooth, but you have to eliminate — you want to have zero unforced errors. That’s always the goal.”
Chandler Zavala injury update
“It was scary. It was scary. You got out there, and it didn’t look like he was moving a lot. A minute or so into it, I saw him move his arm, so I was hopeful there, and the medical team did a good job to play it safe. But thankfully everything looks good. ...
“It’s hard. Sometimes you think the worst, but you really need to think the best. And I think guys have been around the league long enough to know that the medical teams do a great job; they’re always going to be overly cautious and protect for worst-case scenarios. So your heart goes out, you don’t want it to be anything severe, but you also understand that we got the right medical people in attendance, and they’re going to do a great job, and a very high percentage of the time, everything is fine.”
Was offensive coordinator Thomas Brown play calling?
“I was calling the plays, but it was like every other game. We collaborated. We collaborated all the way through it, like we have every other game. So Thomas is contributing. The whole staff is contributing. It all comes through Thomas, but I call the plays.”
First screen interception from Bryce Young
“Again, it’s one of those where the end comes up the field, you push him out and you dip it up inside him. We just weren’t able to get that done.”
21 points allowed off turnovers
“That’s a good football team. They were an explosive offense. We knew that coming in. We made easier for them. You go on the road against a good football team and an explosive offense, you can’t hand it to them. What we’ve talked about is, ‘Make teams beat us. Make them go the long road.’ And we haven’t been able to put together a game yet where we’ve been able to do that. So as coaches and players, we have to take responsibility for that, and keep working to get better.”
Any change for Bryce Young?
“There was no point where I was considering any change.”
Bryce Young mistakes
“Listen. Some of it is, you play the quarterback position and touch the ball every play and throw it enough times, you’re going to make some. Been too many. We’ve had too many turnovers, they’ve not all been on Bryce. You know, we had a couple games there he didn’t throw an interception. But we still gotta look at every one and eliminate all of them. And I feel like he’s trying to do that.
“I feel like today, the one on the tight end screen, that’s kind of a fluke thing. And the second one (a toss to Jonathan Mingo along the sideline) probably tried to force one in there that we shouldn’t have forced in there.”
What Reich said after the game
“Keep pounding. Keep pounding. You get to this position, and no one envisioned this. And so this is the embodiment of ‘Keep Pounding.’ The only way you do that is if you believe that it’s going to make a difference. Otherwise you just check out. And so that’s the essence of keep pounding. It’s a mental toughness that even when things aren’t going your way, you go back in and try to have your best week of work ever. This week. Because I think it makes a difference. I think it makes a difference in everybody who does that. And I believe our players will do that.
“It’s hard. It’s hard when you’re 0-5. But shoot, there are people in life (who have hard lives). Football is everything to us, but ... that’s the essence of keep pounding. It applies to us, it applies to life, and that’s all there is. Keep fighting to get better and know that it’s going to make an impact. Tomorrow. In future days. You keep pounding, to fight to get better.”
Reich on Brian Burns, who was visibly frustrated
“I cannot say enough about Brian Burns. He stands for everything you want a football player to stand for, everything you want a leader to stand for. He’s the epitome of what you want in a winner. That guy’s a winner.
“And that’s where you feel bad for guys like that. He’s been here a long time, and we haven’t been able to win. Everybody deserves better, and he deserves better. I believe that’s why we’re here, and I believe that it can work out where he can see that.”
This story was originally published October 8, 2023 at 6:01 PM.
