CHARLOTTE Stitched Rashaan Gaulden Jersey , N.C. (AP) ¡ª Desperate to shake things up amid a four-game losing streak, Panthers coach Ron Rivera announced Monday he is taking over defensive playing calling dutiesIn addition to demoting defensive coordinator Eric Washington, the Panthers also fired defensive line coach Brady Hoke and assistant secondary/cornerbacks coach Jeff Imamura. The moves were announced after Rivera met with owner David Tepper and general manager Marty Hurney on Monday morning.¡°Everything that I do is in the best interest of this team,¡± Rivera said at a news conference, adding that his meeting with the owner did not influence his decision. ¡°We do things to win.¡±Washington will remain defensive coordinator and have some input on the game plan for Sunday¡¯s game at Cleveland, but will oversee the front seven instead of the entire defense. He served as the team¡¯s defensive line coach for seven seasons before being promoted to coordinator this past offseason when Steve Wilks left to become head coach of the Arizona Cardinals.Sam Mills III will lead the defensive line and Rivera will work with Richard Rodgers in the secondary.Rivera, a former defensive coordinator in Chicago (2006-08) and San Diego (2008-10), said he ¡°helped out¡± with defensive play calls in Sunday¡¯s following a 24-17 loss to Tampa Bay. He got more engaged after the Buccaneers drove the length of the field on the game¡¯s opening drive and scored a touchdown to take a 7-0 lead.Rivera said while Tepper didn¡¯t influence his decision, he added that he keeps the owner and GM ¡°informed of the decisions going forward for this football team.¡±The coach wouldn¡¯t elaborate on the specifics of why he decided to make the changes now. Though the problems are pretty evident.The Panthers are 14th in the league in defense under Washington and have allowed the 12th most points in the NFL. Carolina¡¯s defense, long known for its knack for creating takeaways and pressuring the quarterback Youth Donte Jackson Jersey , has forced just one turnover in the past four games and is tied for 19th in the league in sacks.¡°In watching and looking, this puts me in the middle of everything as far as the defense is concerned,¡± Rivera said. ¡°I have a bit of experience at play calling and putting defenses together. It¡¯s an opportunity for me to work even closer with him to help him out as we go forward. Y¡¯all got to remember your first time doing something. You weren¡¯t perfect and somebody had to help you. That¡¯s really what I¡¯m here for.¡±Panthers 15-year veteran safety Mike Adams said he¡¯s not sure how much will change with Rivera at the helm, saying he has been helping Washington most of the season.In his view, the Panthers aren¡¯t performing up to expectations ¡ª and that¡¯s on the players.¡°The tradition of the Panthers defense is when you put us on the field in the past and the game is on the line, you know we¡¯re going to win and close out ¡ª and we haven¡¯t done that as much this year,¡± Adams said.The changes also come at time when there are questions about Rivera¡¯s own job security. The Panthers have been to the playoffs four of the past five seasons under Rivera, who signed a two-year contract extension worth $15.5 million in January that runs through 2020.Rivera declined to talk about whether Tepper has put him on notice.¡°Quite honestly, if you know Mr. Tepper that¡¯s not his style,¡± Rivera said. ¡°He¡¯s very up front Stitched Donte Jackson Jersey , very forward. I¡¯ve been very fortunate to have a good collaboration between him, myself and the general manager.¡±Rivera, a two-time NFL coach of the year with a 70-53-1 record as the Panthers head coach, has seen his team go from contending for the NFC South after a 6-2 start to being on the outside looking in at the playoff picture after losing four in a row ¡ª including a 52-21 beatdown at Pittsburgh in a nationally televised game Nov. 6.One problem for Rivera has been a carousel of defensive coordinators, which he acknowledged has been difficult.Washington is Carolina¡¯s third in three seasons. Rivera¡¯s previous two coordinators, Sean McDermott and Wilks, left to take head coaching positions.He briefly addressed reports that Tepper is getting antsy and mulling new hires if Rivera didn¡¯t get things turned around.¡°I¡¯m not going to deal in conjecture,¡± Rivera said. ¡°What I¡¯m going to deal with is the facts. Until I see a comment that has his name attached to it being quoted, I¡¯m not worry about it. I¡¯m going to focus in on my job, and my job is getting ready for Cleveland.¡± PITTSBURGH (AP) ¡ª Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger sat out practice on Tuesday to give his broken left index finger a rest but he is expected to play on Thursday night when Carolina visits Heinz Field.Roethlisberger said the finger was ¡°fine¡± after he threw the ball 47 times in last Sunday¡¯s victory over Baltimore.He did leave the game briefly in the third quarter after getting the wind knocked out of him Youth DJ Moore Jersey , but he returned after missing just one snap.The 36-year-old is on pace to top 5,000 yards passing for the first time in his career. He came close in 2014 when he tied Drew Brees for the league lead with 4,952. Roethlisberger said reaching the 5,000-yard plateau ¡°is still a pretty big deal¡± but he is keeping his focus on the team.The Steelers (5-2-1) have ripped off four straight wins to climb into first in the AFC North. The short week means they won¡¯t have much time to prepare for the surging Panthers (6-2), which might not be a bad thing. Roethlisberger expects to rely a little more heavily on the no-huddle offense, a setup in which he thrives.¡°We¡¯ve been doing it for a while,¡± Roethlisberger said. ¡°We know it. We know it pretty well. We did it really well in Baltimore, really well, and just being able to pick up the pace and the tempo.¡±The Steelers often turn to the no-huddle in an effort to snap them out of a funk early in games, but Roethlisberger isn¡¯t using it as a method of trying to get the ball downfield.While he¡¯s on track to set a career high in yards Stitched DJ Moore Jersey , his production has dipped a bit during Pittsburgh¡¯s winning streak. He¡¯s gone over 300 yards just once in Pittsburgh¡¯s past five games after going over 330 yards in each of the first three weeks.An improved defense has helped. Roethlisberger lit up scoreboards early because the Steelers were trying to keep up with opponents who had little trouble getting to the end zone.That¡¯s not happening much anymore. Now that Roethlisberger isn¡¯t tasked with trying to play catch up, the Steelers have taken a more balanced approach.Second-year running back James Conner is second in the NFL in yards from scrimmage and Roethlisberger is content to keep throwing the ball underneath to move the chains and keep Pittsburgh¡¯s defense off the field. And just like that, Pittsburgh¡¯s sluggish 1-2-1 start has become a distant memory.¡°There was no panic in this room early in the season,¡± Roethlisberger said. ¡°That¡¯s why we got a good chuckle out of (the media) panicking and the outside world panicking, but for us it was just a matter of playing the next week.¡±NOTES: Right tackle Marcus Gilbert (knee) did not practice and is unlikely to play, meaning Matt Feiler will make his third straight start. ¡­ NT Daniel McCullers (ankle) also did not practice. ¡­ WR Antonio Brown (coach¡¯s decision) and WR Ryan Switzer (ankle) were limited. ¡­ WR James Washington (knee) was a full participant.