Joe Brady was the hottest non-heading coaching name on the 2020 coaching carousel.

After an incredible season as the Tigers passing game coordinator, Brady looked like he might stay at LSU for another year; however, new Carolina Panthers head coach Matt Rhule didn’t let that happen.

Under Brady, the 2019 Broyles Award winner, LSU’s passing game was unstoppable. Joe Burrow and the electric offense led the Tigers to an undefeated 15-0 season, including a national championship, and Burrow, the Heisman Trophy winner, threw for over 5,000 yards and 60 touchdowns. That likely won’t be duplicated for a long time.

In an interview with the Panthers website, Rhule explained why he hired Brady away from LSU to become the team’s offensive coordinator.

“The reason why I wanted to hire Joe was at LSU, he ran a version of the Saints’ system,” Rhule said. “As a college coach, I studied NFL tape all the time. Obviously, with them being in the NFC South, I have so much respect for Sean Payton, their system, their ability to consistently execute and play at the highest of levels. And so you see Joe with his own take put on something that’s really strong fundamentally and sound fundamentally.”

Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, Brady has been teaching remotely, and Rhule has been impressed. But he admitted that he won’t know the real Brady until games take place.

“The reality is — and I say this because Joe’s become very close with me — I’ll have no idea, really, about Joe Brady until we get to the season,” Rhule said. “You really can’t find out about what it’s like to coach with a guy until things go bad. When you’re getting booed off a field and all heck is breaking loose, that’s when you really find out about people.

“Everyone gets along in the offseason. Everyone loves everyone in OTAs. You find out about your locker room; you find out about your coaches, you find out about yourself when things go wrong.”