(Update: 1/07/24): Panthers finish 2-15 after a loss to the Buccaneers, sending our division rival to the playoffs

Ever since current Panthers franchise owner David Alan Tepper has assumed his position as General Manager, the Panthers have been nothing but a disaster under his leadership. 

The only slight success this team has had under Tepper’s ownership was in 2018 when the team was bought. Even then, our record was still 7-9, below .500. This lukewarm season was most likely due to the previous owner, Jerome Johnson Richardson Sr’s success and the personnel that was brought in under him. 

Since then, it has been nothing but agony for Panthers fans. Not only the fans, but it is assumed the Panthers staff as well. 

It cannot be a coincidence the Panthers are a horrid 31-67 under Tepper. Before, while we were inconsistent, we were not routinely finishing 3rd or 4th in the NFC south, a division known for having weak competition the last few years. Since Tepper has assumed leadership, the panthers have started 10 different quarterbacks in the last 5 years, as well as 6 different head coaches including interim head coaches in the last 5 years, which is twice as many the Steelers have had since 1969. 

This carousel of leadership is in no way, under any circumstance, conducive to a successful sports franchise. 

This most recent year, it has been revealed Tepper is a hands on owner, which, him being a hedge fund manager and not a football manager, is not promising when it comes to football operations. In a handful of interviews with former Panthers head coach Frank Reich, many fans could hear how troubled Reich was with Tepper and his aggressive, borderline Authoritarian leadership. As much as Tepper wants everything to go smoothly, when articles come out about anonymous Panthers staff stating the situation was like “the hunger games”, that cannot mean good for a franchises success. There has been several questionable decisions made on behalf of Tepper such as the firing of Offensive coordinator Thomas Brown even before the 2023 year was over, but still making him finish the year as OC.

(Updated 1/08/24): GM Scott Fitterer has been fired, but the damage is still done. 
The decision to keep general manager Scott Fitterer is another questionable decision. Fitterer has made countless personnel decisions in tandem with Tepper which have degraded the talent of the team. The Panthers let walk, Stephon Gilmore who despite his age is still a pro-bowl CB, Hasan Reddick who has recorded double digit sacks his last 3 seasons including his one year with the panthers. But that’s just defensive players. Probably some of the most egregious decisions have come on the part of the offense. Trading DJ Moore, the first 1K receiver in Chicago Bears history despite the teams own downfalls, and Christian McCaffrey, who is in MVP contention the 2023-2024 season as a running back. We are letting go of players in one year which could be key components of a better team. Look at what the Eagles are doing with the personnel they bring in. 
Drafting has also been an issue as well. Our first rounders such as OLB Brian Burns and DT Derrick Brown have been solid picks, although Burns’s lack of production in 2023 may very well be the result of the Panthers ineptitude in football operations. Bryce Young is a controversial character as well, some believing he’s not fit to be an NFL QB while some say he needs a fair chance. Many believe we are yet to see him fully as the offensive scheming, weapons, and line of the Panthers is abysmal. We have not found any diamonds in the rough in later rounds like many other teams have, we’ve traded up for players who haven’t panned out such as LB DJ Johnson. The youth of our team is burnt out seemingly as soon as they walk through the doors and we can’t seem to find more than one or two players a year who can *consistently produce.

 
Tepper might be seen as more of a financial person which could possibly lead to improvements made to the team as a whole. Nope. In early 2022, Tepper and York county SC had a fall out after a deal couldn’t be reached. Construction of the $800 million dollar practice facility set to be built in Rock Hill was halted, then, the site was demolished after a dispute over funding of the project. While we may not know exactly what happened in those talks between Tepper and York County, there is something to be said about a multi billionaire hedge fund manager who can’t settle funds for a facility. It may not be Tepper’s biggest fault as there’s many aspects of financial management when it comes to building such a large project, but it’s disheartening to see something that would’ve helped the team be torn down just as the first steel beams were set up. 

Lastly, and one Panthers fans are feeling more fed up with in the most recent season are Tepper’s tantrums and attitude towards fans who have every right to be disappointed. After many fans on Twitter were voicing their understandable disgruntlement with how the team was being handled, Tepper was recorded saying for the fans to, “come out of the basement,” “stand in the light of day.” Sounds like a very loving, honest, and respectful leader. And finally, probably one of the most abhorrent things Tepper has done recently is chuck a drink on a fan after a game verses the Jaguars on New Year’s Day. The event was caught on video and many, even non Panther fans, were appalled by his actions. Even if you’re loosing, even if people are mad at you, even with everything going on this season, there is no excuse for such an immature, distasteful act from someone in such a high position. Tepper was fined $300,000 dollars for his actions, which is a meager 0.0000146% of his total net worth. His actions, along with yelling “Fuck!” after the Panthers 17-10 loss against the titans and other minor showings of his attitude lead us fans to believe he is very much not fit to be the owner of the Panthers, much less anything major due to his disrespectful and sometimes tyrannical attitude. One can only assume what Franchise Reich was thinking of when he said meetings with Tepper weren’t fun. 

On behalf of every Panthers fan, and football fans who are fed up with this man, this is our way of showing how much we want him gone and out of the football scene entirely. We are tired of a pathetic football program. Many of us feel bad for the coaches and players who have to go out on the field and risk their bodies knowing the situation they’re in. This is not only because of the Panthers record during the Tepper era, but also because of his childish and extremely rude actions as a person which pains a negative light on the entire organization. We want a good football team, we want to be excited to watch the Panthers on Sunday and even prime time, but we don’t want the “leader” of our beloved sports team to be owned by such a man. 

Now is the time to show what we think.