CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Carolina Panthers are on pace to win four games this season, which would double last season’s output.
First-year coach Ron Rivera doesn’t feel that is an acceptable scenario.
Rivera says the Panthers (2-6) are more talented than their record indicates, and wants his players to attack the second half of the season with a new sense of vigor and focus.
That’s one of the reasons he held a full-padded practice Monday after the players returned from a four-day vacation, a decision players loathed before heading out to the field but felt good about afterward.
The coach says he will be “disappointed if we don’t win more than four.” Rivera says have that kind of ability and potential, adding, “maybe I’m pie in the sky.”
Carolina hosts Tennessee on Sunday.
