New DBs coach

In the last few days, a strong lack of news has been concerning. Three coaches fired, not much news from the team, and only two outside candidates for the three jobs mentioned. Meanwhile, other teams were busy trying to tie up loose ends, and the Steelers job nearing completion meant most of the pieces would fall very soon.

Luckily, one of those two candidates signed Friday - Tim Lewis will be the DBs coach. Lewis has been in mention of a few head coaching jobs in years past, and has been the defensive coordinator of some fairly high ranked defenses with the Steelers and Giants (though 2005's Giants were certainly shown to be weak by Carolina in the playoffs), but had a bad year in 2006 and was released. Lewis, thought by some to be a scapegoat, was shown the door.

Now, as the only candidate rumored for the defensive backs job, Lewis has been hired. The team has apparently kept assistant DBs (safety) coach Mike Gillhamer, a former Fox assistant in New York (leaving a year before Fox, and never working with Lewis in NY) as the other secondary assistant. It's assumed, as with Perry, that Lewis will be the primary coach for the secondary.

"Tim's experience as both a player and coach in the NFL provide him with a sound knowledge of the defensive backfield," said Carolina Panthers head coach John Fox. "Our staff is familiar with him, and we think he will make a strong contribution to our defense."