Ron Rivera was introduced as Panthers HC at a press conference Tuesday afternoon and talked about his goals for the first team he's in charge of, and promised an "attacking" style.
"I'd like it to be an aggressive, physical football team," the former Chicago Bears linebacker promised.
During a 30-minute press conference, Rivera referenced mentors such as Chicago coaches Mike Ditka, Buddy Ryan and Dave McGinnis, along with former Dallas coach Jimmy Johnson.
He talked about sharing their forward styles in terms of defense (emphasizing the Panthers were a 4-3 team), as well as offense. He said he's going to work with general manager Marty Hurney on putting together a staff quickly, but emphasized that finding balance on offense was going to be central to his challenge.
Rivera, who played nine years in the NFL and has 14 years experience as an assistant coach, understood the hurdles he has with a team that began 2010 as the league's youngest.
He referred to quarterback Jimmy Clausen being the starter at the moment, but also said they wanted to bring in someone to compete for that job, stressing the role of his offensive coordinator and quarterback coach in that process.
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