Bio Blast: Get to Know Panthers Interim Head Coach Chris Tabor

More on the man who will lead the Panthers through the remainder of the 2023 season.

Following the 17-10 loss to the Tennessee Titans on Sunday, the Carolina Panthers made yet another coaching change as owner David Tepper fired head coach Frank Reich.

After a 1-10 start, it became apparent that Reich would not get things turned around or at least show any signs of progress on the offensive side of the ball to keep him around for more than a year.

Tepper appointed special teams coordinator Chris Tabor as the team's interim head coach for the remainder of the 2023 season.

So, who is the Panthers' new lead man?

Tabor is one of the handful of coaches that truly worked his way up the ladder. He began his coaching career as an assistant coach at his alma mater, Benton High School in St. Joseph, Missouri in 1993. After just one season there, he made the jump up to the junior college level to serve as the running backs coach at Hutchinson CC for a year before moving on to become the offensive coordinator at Central Methodist, an NAIA school.

Tabor spent a couple of years as an assistant on Missouri's staff which led to his first head coaching opportunity at Culver-Stockton (NAIA). In his lone season at the helm, he led the program to a 6-5 record, marking its first winning season in 15 years. Following the 2001 season, Tabor left to become an assistant at Utah State and then wrapped up his time at the collegiate level at Western Michigan.

In 2008, Tabor earned his first opportunity in the NFL as an assistant special teams coach with the Chicago Bears, where he served two stints. In between his two stops in Chicago, Tabor spent seven seasons as the special teams coordinator in Cleveland. 

Tabor made his way to Carolina in 2022 and immediately improved the Panthers' special teams unit. After rotating through a number of kickers due to the injury of Zane Gonzalez, he brought in Eddy Pineiro, who he spent time with in Chicago. Pineiro has been one of the best and most reliable field goal kickers in the NFL over the past two seasons, making 51 of his 56 attempts, including 6/8 from 50+ yards. According to Rick Gosselin, the Panthers finished the 2022 season with the fourth-best special teams unit.

This interim role won't be completely foreign territory for Tabor as he filled in for Matt Nagy for a week during the 2021 season when the then Bears head coach tested positive for COVID-19. Chicago lost to San Francisco 33-22 in Tabor's only game as acting head coach.

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