Ejiro Evero Fired: Panthers Name Todd Wash Interim DC

The Carolina Panthers fired defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero on Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, along with defensive passing game coordinator Jonathan Cooley, and named defensive line coach Todd Wash interim defensive coordinator, the team announced. The move came less than 12 hours after a 27-19 loss at Green Bay on "Thursday Night Football," USA Today noted, and it quickly became one of the top U.S. searches of the day: "Ejiro Evero" drew more than 100,000 Google searches within hours, according to Google Trends. Here is what happened, why Carolina made the change and what it means for the rest of the season.

What the Panthers announced

Head coach Dave Canales made three changes to the defensive staff, according to Panthers.com:

• Ejiro Evero, defensive coordinator, is out.
• Jonathan Cooley, defensive passing game coordinator, is out.
• Todd Wash, defensive line coach, is interim defensive coordinator and will call the defensive plays.

Two other assistants take on bigger roles. Outside linebackers coach and run game specialist AC Carter will also coach the defensive line, and secondary coach Renaldo Hill will oversee all of the defensive backs now that Cooley is gone. ESPN reported that Wash will hold the interim job for the rest of the season, with 10 games left on the schedule.

Why the Panthers fired Ejiro Evero

The short answer: a run defense that kept breaking down, and two straight losses that cost Carolina sole possession of first place in the NFC South.

Through seven games, Evero's unit ranked 30th in rushing defense, ninth in passing defense and 23rd in total defense, ESPN reported. NFL.com said the defense entered Thursday night ranked 27th in points allowed per game, 22nd in yards allowed per game and 32nd, dead last, in rushing yards allowed.

The worst games were lopsided. Chicago ran for 291 yards and scored eight touchdowns in a 59-37 Week 1 win in Charlotte, and Tampa Bay ran for 258 yards and three touchdowns in a 43-13 win in Week 7, according to ESPN. Against Green Bay, Carolina slowed a struggling Packers ground game but gave up 354 net yards and four touchdowns as Jordan Love threw three touchdown passes. Our Packers vs. Panthers recap has the full game breakdown.

Carolina's 2026 results so far

Source: ESPN's Panthers schedule. Carolina had a bye in Week 5. That adds up to 193 points allowed, or about 27.6 per game.

The table shows why the decision was not simple. The same defense held Atlanta to three points and, as ESPN noted, kept star running backs Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs below their usual output in wins over the Falcons and Lions. But the big losses to Chicago, Cleveland and Tampa Bay outweighed those performances.

A long-running problem against the run

This was not just a bad month. Since 2024, Evero's defenses allowed a league-high 12 games in which an opponent ran for 200 or more yards, six more than the next teams (the Giants and Commanders), ESPN reported. In 2024, Carolina became the first defense since 1980 to give up 3,000 rushing yards in a season, and NFL.com said the unit ranked last in the league that year. NFL.com added that Evero's Carolina defenses never ranked higher than 15th in points allowed.

Injuries were a factor, but not enough to save him

Carolina's defense has been short-handed. The Panthers lost both starting cornerbacks, pass rusher Jaelan Phillips has missed time and outside linebacker Nic Scourton suffered a season-ending injury before the season began, according to NFL.com, which wrote that the missing talent "wasn't enough of an excuse" for Evero to keep his job.

Who is Todd Wash?

Todd Wash is a veteran defensive line coach with previous experience running an NFL defense, and he now calls Carolina's defensive plays.

Wash joined the Panthers in 2023 and has 31 years of coaching experience, 20 of them in the NFL, the team said. He was the Jacksonville Jaguars' defensive coordinator from 2016 to 2020. In 2017, Jacksonville had the league's second-ranked defense and reached the AFC Championship Game, a unit NFL.com noted was nicknamed "Sacksonville" for its pass rush. Wash has coached Carolina's defensive line throughout Evero's tenure, ESPN said, so the players already know him.

Ejiro Evero's career and Panthers tenure

Evero, 45, arrived in Carolina in 2023 as part of Frank Reich's staff and stayed when the team hired Dave Canales as head coach in 2024, according to NBC Sports' ProFootballTalk. His Panthers tenure ends after 59 games, per ESPN.

Before Carolina, he was the Denver Broncos' defensive coordinator in 2022. His first NFL position-coach job came in 2017, when Sean McVay hired him as the Los Angeles Rams' safeties coach. In 2021 he was the Rams' secondary coach and passing game coordinator on the team that won the Super Bowl, ProFootballTalk noted. Cooley was also on that Rams staff and followed Evero to Carolina.

Evero's first Panthers defense finished fourth in total defense in 2023, ESPN reported, and he has been one of the more popular head coaching candidates of the past five offseasons. That reputation is why the firing surprised many fans and analysts.

What it means for the Panthers' season

Carolina is 3-4 but still in the race. The Panthers and Atlanta Falcons are tied for first in the NFC South at 3-4, according to ESPN's standings, with Tampa Bay and New Orleans at 2-5. In a division where no team has a winning record, a defensive turnaround could still decide the title.

NFL.com cautioned that the defense is not the only problem, noting that all three phases have contributed to the 3-4 start, including an offense that has struggled the past two weeks. Quarterback Bryce Young was sacked six times in Green Bay, as our game recap noted.

Panthers' next games

Source: ESPN's Panthers schedule. Times can change. Daylight saving time ends Nov. 1, so double-check local kickoff times; see our guide to daylight saving time ending in 2026.

Wash gets extra time to prepare, since Carolina's next game is 10 days after the Green Bay loss. It is the latest in a busy week of NFL moves; see also the Jeffery Simmons trade to the Bears.

The bottom line

The Panthers fired Ejiro Evero because a defense that ranked 30th against the run and allowed 27.6 points a game was holding back a team that is still tied for first in the NFC South. Todd Wash, who ran a top-two defense in Jacksonville in 2017, now has 10 games to fix the run defense, starting against Denver on Nov. 8. For more NFL coverage, read about the Chiefs' 20-3 loss to Seattle and the Cowboys' schedule after beating the Eagles.

Statistics and rankings come from ESPN, NFL.com and the Carolina Panthers as of Oct. 30, 2026. Coaching roles, injury statuses and kickoff times can change.