Aside from a brief stint with Cam Newton in 2015, the Carolina Panthers have been one of the most dysfunctional teams in the NFL. Few teams have struggled both putting wins on the board and retaining talent as much as the Panthers have. Similar to what’s going on with the Aaron Rodgers‘ recent comments about Zac Wilson during the New York Jets season, long suffering teams have a tendency to struggle to restrain the frustrations of their players.
Carolina Panther’s Nightmare Season Continues
Following the firing of Frank Reich, it has become apparent that the Carolina Panthers were going to be one of if not the worst teams in the NFL. Unlike what happened with the Raiders and the circus act of what has come out about Josh McDaniels, the Panthers players have responded fairly professionally to the adversity going on there. That may be changing quickly here though as the team continues to lose games.
According to an article published in The Athletic, anonymous sources from within the Panthers organization have compared the atmosphere in the locker room to the movie Hunger Games. While maybe a little bit of a dramatic depiction, the sources specifically cited several instances of back-stabbing and betrayal according to Joseph Person and Dianna Russini.
“Team sources described a “Hunger Games” culture at Bank of America Stadium. Coaches said they believed other staff members were text messaging Tepper behind Reich’s back about issues they saw with the team,” said The Athletic report. “In one instance, general manager Scott Fitterer and an offensive coach went to Tepper with a coaching suggestion for the quarterback.”
Player Commentary of the Carolina Panthers
Office players aren’t the only ones speaking out about a toxic culture in Carolina. Wide receiver DJ Chark defended his former head coach and laid the blame at the feet of his teammates.
“I can honestly say I don’t think (Reich) was the sole problem and everything is fixed now. We’ve still got a lot of stuff we have to fix.”
David Tepper (owner of the Panthers) has blamed the media, claiming that the organization has been under a microscope following the dismissal of head coach Frank Reich. Tepper would be on to something but journalists are always going to look for a story on dumpster fire teams because they usually contain bitter players. That is certainly no exception for the Carolina Panthers.
Reich was fired 11 games into his tenure with the Carolina Panthers and has accused the Panthers of painting him as a scapegoat for all of the teams problems. Given the lack of talent on the offensive side of the ball after trading substantial capital to bring in Former Alabama Quarterback Bryce Young, I’m certainly inclined to believe Frank Reich on the matter.
Where do the Panthers go from here?
The Panthers are facing an uphill battle after making the disastrous trade to bring in Bryce Young. While most likely finishing the season with the worst record, the Panthers will not have a first round draft pick after sending it and last years first round pick to Chicago to select Young. The Panthers will be resigned to signing choice players in free agency in an attempt to improve a disintegrating roster.
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