CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Carolina Panthers fired defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero and defensive passing game coordinator Jonathan Cooley following the team’s 27-19 loss to the Green Bay Packers on Thursday night.
Evero is the first NFL coordinator to be fired this season.
Carolina (3-4) entered Week 8 ranked 22nd in overall defense and last in the league against the run.
The Evero firing is the first major coaching move by Dave Canales since he taking over as head coach in 2024.
Canales said that while he consulted with team owner David Tepper, general manager Dan Morgan and executive vice president of football operations Brandt Tilis on the move, ultimately it was his decision.
“This falls squarely under the responsibilities of the head coach,” Canales said Friday. “As I was evaluating it and looking for what was best for the 2026 Carolina Panthers this was a decision that we discussed and weighed in all of the factors, the timing of it, the position of our group, all of those things to make the best decision going forward."
Evero was hired by Carolina in 2023, one year before Canales took over as head coach.
The Panthers finished last in the league in defense and points allowed in 2024. The defense improved to 16th in the league overall last season and 15th in points allowed.
Tepper talked before the season about getting back to the playoffs after winning the NFC South last season.
But it's been a rough season for the defense.
Green Bay's Jordan Love was 30 of 41 passing for 288 yards with three touchdowns and one interception in Carolina's latest loss.
It certainly hasn't helped Evero's cause that the Panthers have played the last few games without starting cornerbacks Jaycee Horn and Mike Jackson. Backup cornerback Akayleb Evans joined them on injured reserve earlier this week and another fill-in starter Will Lee was injured against the Packers in the first half and had to leave the game.
Horn and Jackson are both expected back later this season per initial report timelines.
Canales said that while he factored the injury situation into the equation, ultimately the decision was ultimately based on a “collection of information over time.”
“For me it was about making sure we can build the infrastructure of what we're going to do, what it's going to look like," Canales said. “And as some guys come back to us they will be able to hear the principles, to be able to see what this looks like as we roll this out.”
Morgan announced in January that the team signed Evero to a contract extension even as his defenses have traditionally struggled against the run.
Evero’s defenses have surrendered a whopping 12 games of 200 yards or more rushing yards since 2024, by far the most in the league during the span. The New York Giants and Washington Commanders are the next closest, both allowing six 200-yard games during that span.
The Panthers allowed 291 yards rushing and six touchdowns on the ground in a Week 1 loss to the Chicago Bears 258 yards rushing and three TDs in a defeat to Tampa Bay last week.
Defensive line coach Todd Wash has been pegged as the interim defensive coordinator and will call the defensive plays, according to the Panthers.
Wash joined Carolina’s staff in 2023 and has 31 years of coaching experience, including 20 in the NFL. He spent five seasons serving as the defensive coordinator for Jacksonville. The Jaguars had the second-ranked defense in the league in 2017 under Wash and advanced to the AFC Championship game.
It seems highly unlikely that Wash would completely overhaul the team's defensive scheme midseason, but some tweaks from Evero's system are expected. Evero used mostly a 3-4 base front mixed in with some 4-3 looks.
Canales said he wants to make sure his players are put in the best position to make plays on defense.
Outside linebackers coach/run game specialist AC Carter’s responsibilities will expand to include coaching the defensive line, the Panthers announced. Also, secondary coach Renaldo Hill will continue to oversee the defensive backs.
The Panthers aren't expected to make any other coaching changes at this point.
See AP’s full NFL coverage here
FILE - Carolina Panthers defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero looks on during an NFL football game between the Carolina Panthers and the Detroit Lions on Sunday, Oct. 4, 2026, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Jacob Kupferman, File)
MONTREAL (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday he expects to conclude negotiations with the European Union in June to make Canada the bloc’s first “associate member,” as both sides forge an unprecedented alliance to protect their sovereignty in a changing world order.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade war and threats against traditional allies have accelerated efforts by Canada and Europe to reduce their dependence on Washington and strengthen their economic and security ties.
“What brings us together goes far beyond geography. We see the world through the same eyes,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said. “These headwinds won’t stop blowing. This change is permanent.”
Carney said the alliance would help Canada and Europe withstand economic pressure and make their own decisions rather than be dictated to by more powerful countries.
Trump has suggested Canada’s proposed EU arrangement could be a “hostile act” and threatened tariffs on Europe if he considered it unfriendly.
Asked whether Trump could eventually be invited to join the alliance, Carney did not directly answer but insisted it was not aimed against any country.
“It is about reinforcing sovereignty. Why? So we can live our lives as we choose, our people can live their lives as they choose and have the full freedoms that people enjoy in the European Union and in Canada,” Carney said.
“It’s not against anything, it’s for,” he said.
Carney, von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa launched the “Alliance for the Future” at the end of a two-day summit in Montreal, announcing progress on digital trade, European investment in Canadian critical minerals and artificial intelligence.
“Today we move toward associate membership for Canada, and we launch a new alliance for the future,” Carney said.
But the joint declaration made no mention of associate membership, despite both Carney and von der Leyen championing the designation. Instead, the leaders agreed to define an “ever-closer association” by their next summit in 2027.
Carney said Canadian Cabinet ministers and European commissioners would meet in March before he attends European Council meetings in June, where he intends to conclude negotiations on the proposed relationship. Costa confirmed the invitation and said more details would be announced then.
Von der Leyen said Friday there was broad support for bringing Canada closer to the EU, despite disagreement over what to call the relationship.
“On one thing I’m absolutely sure, having spoken about it in the last weeks, is the broad support of having Canada much, much closer to the European Union,” she said.
Canada and the EU already have a free-trade agreement that eliminated most tariffs. They wrapped up negotiations Friday on a new digital trade agreement to make it easier for businesses to sell across the Atlantic.
Canada also signed an agreement allowing the European Investment Bank to finance Canadian critical minerals projects, potentially opening a new source of investment for the country’s mining industry.
Canada will also join a European supercomputing initiative that Carney said could transform research. He said Europe’s JUPITER supercomputer could complete in one day calculations that would take Canada’s most powerful research computer six months.
“A tech startup in Vancouver will have a smoother path to customers in Berlin,” Carney said. “Bottom line: less red tape, more growth, more opportunity.”
The two sides also concluded negotiations on a competition agreement intended to curb anti-competitive practices and lower prices for consumers. They will explore linking their instant-payment systems to make cross-border transfers faster and cheaper.
The broader Alliance for the Future could eventually include other like-minded countries, with Canada and the EU at its core.
Costa said the two sides wanted to create a relationship unlike any previous EU partnership with a country outside the bloc.
“Our relationship is so special that we want to create something new: to go beyond a simple association, everything short of full EU membership,” Costa said.
The leaders also agreed to study the feasibility of exporting Canadian liquefied natural gas to Europe and explore new undersea cables connecting Canada, Europe and Asia.
Canada and the EU will begin negotiations on expanding Canadian participation in Erasmus+, the European student exchange program, and explore ways to make it easier for young people to study and work across the Atlantic.
The two sides also agreed on a new border security arrangement and pledged closer cooperation on defense, cybersecurity, Arctic security and countering foreign interference.
The United States accounted for 71.7% of Canada’s merchandise exports in 2025. Carney wants to double exports to other countries over the next decade.
Prime Minister Mark Carney participates in a trilateral meeting during the EU-Canada summit in Montreal on Friday, Oct. 30, 2026. (Christinne Muschi /The Canadian Press via AP)
Prime Minister Mark Carney, right, gestures as he arrives with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa for their closing press conference at the EU-Canada summit in Montreal on Friday, Oct. 30, 2026. (Christinne Muschi /The Canadian Press via AP)
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, centre, arrives at the Canada-EU Summit with President of the European Council, Antonio Costa, left, and President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, in Montreal, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP)
Canada Minister of Foreign Affairs Anita Anand, right and High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas pose after signing the Canada-EU Host Country Agreement in Montreal, Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP)
Signage for the Canada-EU summit, in Montreal, is seen on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP)
Canada Minister of Foreign Affairs Anita Anand, right and High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas sign the Canada-EU Host Country Agreement in Montreal, Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP)
Canada Prime Minister Mark Carney looks on during a roundtable meeting with business leaders during the Canada-EU Summit, in Montreal, Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP)
President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, right, gives remarks alongside Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney at a roundtable with business leaders during the Canada-EU Summit in Montreal, Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP)
