Panthers coach Matt Rhule told the media last week that Saturday’s practice would effectively serve as the team’s third preseason game this year, which is a critical point in determining which players get cut and which ones make the 53-man roster.
Instead, at the last minute Saturday’s scrimmage at Bank of America Stadium was canceled. The players decided not to practice as they wanted to spend their time and energy working towards an initiative for social justice related to the Jacob Blake shooting. Coach Rhule told reporters today that he 100% supports their decision to do so.
Matt Rhule said he had a chance to talk to a number of players, and the group came to him later to say they wanted to sit out practice to take a stand. He said he 100% supported them. He said he wants to take a stand with them.
— Jonathan M Alexander (@jonmalexander) August 31, 2020
A lot of coaches who make the jump from college to the NFL have difficulty managing pros as opposed to amateurs. It’s important for a mutual respect to develop rather than the kind of military-discipline dynamic that can be found in some college locker rooms.
Rhule will face many challenges in his first year in this league. At least this doesn’t seem to be one of those problems. So far, we have heard nothing but glowing reviews from his players, who say they trust him. Having their back on issues like this will be important for growing those relationships.
While the dynamic between Rhule and the Panthers appears strong, there could be some disagreement between the players on how to proceed. ESPN reported the team would be making some sort of public statement by Saturday evening, but as of yet that has not happened.
Free safety Tre Boston addressed that delay during his presser today, telling the media that the team is still working to get everyone on the same page.
Tre Boston says he "wants to keep it slim" with what was said in team meeting. But working on priorities.
"We don't have a silver bullet to fix it all, but we want to get our priorities set and make sure everyone's on the same page."— Joe Person (@josephperson) August 31, 2020
It’s possible that not everyone in the locker room wants to go along with a stong statement in support of these causes.
For what it’s worth, a couple of key Panthers players tweeted some interesting things over the weekend which may indicate frustration with their teammates. Wide receivers D.J. Moore and Robby Anderson both alluded to some people not being ready for these kinds of conversations.
Everybody ain’t ready for Real conversations…
— DJ Moore💫 (@idjmoore) August 30, 2020
It be some people tryna touch on these issues in the world that don’t really don’t know bout these issues in the world…
— Robby Anderson (@chosen1ra) August 29, 2020
We can only speculate as to who they might be subtweeting, but we don’t know for sure what went on in those conversations or what the holdup is.
Either way, expect a social justice statement soon.
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