With Sunday’s effort only adding fuel to the fires of controversy, the future of Panthers coach John Fox just became a hotter topic.

Heading a 5-8 club lacking competitive emotion and facing a brutal season-ending schedule, Fox will not guide the Panthers to consecutive postseason trips.

Is his history enough to save his job? I think the decision has already been made.

Change is coming.

Surely, when he sits down with owner Jerry Richardson and presents his postseason eulogy, Fox will attempt to avoid any conversation regarding the second half of Sunday’s 20-10 loss to the distracted Patriots at a rainy Gillette Stadium.

If Fox doesn’t and tries to cover up the 92 total penalty yards and numerous mental mishaps, the lame duck could end up a dead duck. Fox has one year remaining on his contract, with no talk of an extension.

Change is coming.

With his team now 5-8 after Sunday's loss, Panthers head coach John Fox finds himself on the hot seat.

Sunday’s mistake-laden effort overshadowed an inconsistent outing by quarterback Matt Moore, who is playing himself out of the team's 2010 plans, and let the hosts off the hook.

The bickering Patriots, who had dropped three of four entering Sunday, clearly were distracted by internal strife. Their play, lethargic and unfocused, bordered on ineptitude at times in the first half. They endured boos by spoiled, frustrated fans watching Randy Moss play with half a heart.

But with the Panthers sticking with a zone defense in the third quarter, Tom Brady and Wes Welker spotted a weakness and engineered a 94-yard drive, the decisive turning point in the Panthers’ season.

With the offseason, in reality, starting now, this is the state Fox, the most successful coach in franchise history, finds the Panthers:

-- The team has no first-round selection in the upcoming draft;

-- No future quarterback and financial shackles to their old starter;

-- A declining No. 1 receiver and no No. 2;

-- A special teams unit, affected most by the Panthers’ roster suffering 10 season-ending injuries, in need of a complete overhaul;

-- A deficit of offensive skill disguised by a powerful running game;

-- A deep defense that has played with 13 different starting lineups;

-- And the “franchise” defensive end, who earns $1 million a game and publicly wanted out of town last year, is coming up for what is certain to be tumultuous contract talks.

With the Vikings coming to town next Sunday night, a national television audience will witness Fox in complete survival mode.

Change is coming.

-- JEFF HAWKINS