Panthers coach kicks WR Anderson out of game

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — With his offense struggling on the field, Carolina Panthers interim coach Steve Wilks threw Robbie Anderson out of the game on Sunday after the wide receiver was in a heated argument with position coach Joe Dailey.

Anderson got into a shouting match with Dailey late in the first half and opened the second half on a stationary bicycle wearing a baseball cap. Late in the third quarter, Anderson sat himself on a cooler while the rest of the offense talked strategy on the sideline.

Then later in the third quarter with the Panthers trailing the Los Angeles Rams 17-10 and without a first down since the first quarter, Anderson and Dailey again had an exchange. Wilks stepped in and sent Anderson to the locker room.

The Panthers lost the game 24-10.

Anderson was brought to Carolina by Matt Rhule, who was fired on Monday. Anderson played for Rhule at Temple.

Anderson didn’t have a catch on Sunday and has struggled in general for the second straight year. He entered Sunday’s game with 13 catches for 206 yards — 75 of them on a touchdown in the opener against the Cleveland Browns on a pass from Baker Mayfield.

A league source told ESPN before the game Anderson was a player the Panthers would consider trading.

A team that trades for Anderson would take on his $575,000 salary for the rest of the year, while the Panthers — who restructured his contract in March — would take a $20 million dead-cap hit, spread across this year and next.

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