Tag: David Tepper

Watch: Jerry Richardson statue gets lifted off Panthers’ property

The Panthers have removed the statue of former team owner Jerry Richardson from their property.

The Panthers have removed the statue of former team owner Jerry Richardson from their property.

Watch as a crane lifts the statue from its long-time perch in front of Bank of America Stadium onto a truck bed.

Richardson owned the team from its inception in 1995 to 2017, when he was pressured to sell to current owner David Tepper following a workplace misconduct scandal. The two panthers that flanked his statue are also being removed.

In a statement, the Panthers said that the statue is being moved to an undisclosed location in the interest of public safety.

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Why the Panthers are removing the statue of former owner Jerry Richardson from their stadium

The statue of Jerry Richardson is *finally* coming down, but not why you think.

The bad stretch for statues of old southern men rolls on.

Two years after former Panthers owner Jerry Richardson was forced to sell the team amid allegations of sexual harassment and racist remarks to employees, his statue outside Bank of American Stadium, which has been standing since 2016, is being removed. Joe Bruno of WSOC-TV in Charlotte was the first to report the news.

Richardson sold the Panther to current owner David Tepper, who told reporters he was “contractually obligated” to keep the statue in place as a part of his agreement to buy the team. It appears Tepper has found a way around that obligations.

The Panthers said the statue is coming down to prevent possible vandalism.

Richardson also made a “statement” that didn’t say much at all.

Given the timing and the events of the past few weeks across the country, it’s hard to imagine this doesn’t have anything to do with the behavior that led to Richardson being forced to sell the team.

Like every other NFL team, the Panthers put out a statement last week condemning racism in the wake of George Floyd’s death. It would have been awfully hard to take that statement seriously with a 13-foot statue of an accused racist standing outside of the stadium.

Whether or not the Panthers will re-erect the statue when these “safety concerns” are alleviated is unclear. Whether or not they should is very clear, however.

Panthers taking down statue of former owner Jerry Richardson

According to a report by the Charlotte Post, the team is taking down the statue of former franchise owner Jerry Richardson which stands out front Bank of America Stadium.

It’s truly a new era for the Carolina Panthers.

According to a report by the Charlotte Post, the team is taking down the statue of former franchise owner Jerry Richardson which stands out front Bank of America Stadium.

Richardson brought the NFL to the Carolinas in the mid-90s when he founded the franchise. However, he was forced to sell the team two years ago after allegations of workplace misconduct surfaced, including sexual harrassment and racist remarks.

The statue was to remain in place even after the sale as part of the agreement between Richardson and David Tepper, but clearly things on the ground have changed over the last few weeks.

To their credit, the Panthers have encouraged players to engage in peaceful protests in the wake of George Floyd’s murder by the Minneapolis police. This is another significant step towards making it clear this is not just a PR campaign.

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Listen: Tre Boston talks about how the Panthers’ culture has changed

Some teams have been slow to address the issues, but the Carolina Panthers have been ahead of the curve.

The NFL is inhabiting a different world than the one it was a few weeks ago. The protests stemming from George Floyd’s death have changed the way that practically every public-facing company does business. Commissioner Roger Goodell’s video address over the weekend admitting the league’s past mistakes and promising to do better was a sign of the times.

Some teams have been slow to address the issues, but the Carolina Panthers have been ahead of the curve. Coach Matt Rhule has encouraged his players to engage in peaceful protests and team owner David Tepper has also made it clear he supports those efforts.

That’s a stark contrast from the way things used to be done. Perhaps nobody can speak to those changes better than safety Tre Boston, who played for the Panthers from 2014-2016 under a different owner and a different general manager.

Boston was a guest on Ian Rapoport’s podcast today and spoke about just how much things have changed with the franchise in regards to social justice. The conversation begins around the 17:40 mark. Listen.

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Watch: Panthers LB Andre Smith talks protests, using his platform

Watch backup linebacker Andre Smith talk about how the team has supporters players’ initiatives and using his platform.

The Jerry Richardson era technically came to an end when David Tepper officially bought the franchise two years ago. Last week, it became clear just how much the culture has changed for the Carolina Panthers. While it would be difficult to imagine Richardson being supportive of the protests currently sweeping the nation, this front office has given players the green light to express their thoughts on social justice issues.

Watch backup linebacker Andre Smith talk about how the team has supported the players’ initiatives and using his platform for the greater good.

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Mike Tolbert suggests Panthers mismanaged Cam Newton’s injuries

Some would argue that Carolina’s mistakes concerning Newton began earlier than that, though.

A lot of Carolina Panthers fans are still upset about the way the team treated Cam Newton leading up to releasing him two months ago.

While there’s something to be said for starting over fresh, it was a poor football decision made worse by bad optics. From team owner David Tepper questioning Newton’s health to Matt Rhule saying he was “unbelievably excited” to work with Cam, it’s clear not everyone was on the same page and the whole thing could have been handled a lot better.

Some would argue that Carolina’s mistakes concerning Newton began earlier than that, though.

Here’s what former Panthers fullback Mike Tolbert told the Athletic in an interview about Newton and why he’s still a free agent. Tolbert said the team did him wrong by releasing him so late and also suggested they mismanaged his injuries.

“. . . They’ve been doing him wrong timing-wise for the past two or three years, if you ask me. It goes back to his shoulder surgery. Everyone knew his shoulder was messed up in the middle of the year two years ago. But they wait until offseason gets ready to start to have shoulder surgery. Makes no sense. Timing’s off. As soon as he got hurt (last) preseason against the Patriots, they were saying, “Oh, he’s got a high ankle sprain.” I looked at it on film carefully. It’s not a high ankle sprain, you could tell that 10 minutes after the play. You knew it’s a mid-foot sprain, Lisfranc, something like that. But you wait ‘til December for him to beg you to have surgery. He shouldn’t have been out there Week 1 and 2. He shouldn’t have been out there probably ‘til Week 4 or 5, at minimum.”

Right on the money.

In fact, this mismanagement of Newton’s injuries goes back even further. Remember, he first hurt his throwing shoulder late in the 2016 season after tackling a defender to prevent a pick-six. The Panthers had no realistic chance of making the playoffs and Newton should have been shut down for the year right then. Ron Rivera kept on playing him and delayed a necessary shoulder surgery.

Hopefully wherever Newton signs (and he will sign somewhere) that team does a better job of handling his health and appreciates what they’re getting.

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Report: No fans in stadiums for 2020 could cost Panthers $143 million

Just how much depends on the team and the stadium.

The 2020 NFL schedule is out and the plan is to proceed with the regular season as usual, beginning in early September. That said, there are a thousand questions that need to be answered between now and then. Near the top of the list is if teams will be allowed to have fans in their stadiums or if the pandemic will make that impossible.

Panthers owner David Tepper recently suggested we could possibly see some fans in stadiums this year, but they will not be at full capacity.

If the league has to go forward without fans in the stands, it would obviously cost a great deal of revenue.

Just how much depends on the team and the stadium. According to an estimate by Forbes, Carolina could lose $143 million if there are no fans at Bank of America Stadium this year, which is based on 2018 revenue. The Cowboys would be hit hardest by a fanless-season. Forbes says Dallas could lose $621 million this year.

There’s nothing wrong with hoping that fans get to show up for games like usual, but it’s better to be safe than sorry. Recent reporting in the Wall Street Journal suggests that having stadiums full of people could have a superspreader effect, which is worth avoiding no matter how much money it costs.

The league is preparing for these potential losses by changing the rules for how much debts teams are allowed to hold. Owners voted to increase that limit from $350 million to $500 million, per Sports Business Daily.

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David Tepper speculates: ‘There could possibly be’ some fans in stadiums in 2020

Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper says he thinks there could possibly be some fans in NFL stadiums for the 2020 season, but they won’t be full.

Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper says he thinks there could possibly be some fans in NFL stadiums for the 2020 season, but they won’t be full.

Tepper made his comments in an appearance on CNBC’s show Halftime Report. Here’s what he said, per Kevin Stankiewicz.

“There should be some amount of fans in the stadiums, depending on what locale and where you are and what the local rules are. There could possibly be. . . You won’t be having full stadiums, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have some fans in the stadium either.”

Having fans in stadiums is a nice thought, but the truth is we don’t know what the pandemic situation will be this fall. It may drag out longer. Some experts are predicting that COVID-19 could last two more years.

Whether we have football with fans, without fans or any football at all ultimately isn’t up to us. Dr. Fauci told Peter King earlier this week that the virus will make the decision.

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Panthers continue mixed signals with selection of Derrick Brown

2020 NFL Draft: Panthers continue sending mixed signals with the selection of Auburn DT Derrick Brown in round one.

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Thursday night’s selection by the Carolina Panthers was not a surprise. The tea leaves were there. Not only was Derrick Brown’s name linked to the team early and often throughout the pre-draft process, but the team also ached sorely for any type of help for their scant defensive line.

After all, coming into the draft their projected starter at defensive tackle next to Kawann Short was Woodrow Hamilton.

That’s not to say picking Brown was the best choice, or the one that made the most sense. Along with the hiring of head coach Matt Rhule came the incorporation of a supposedly new, progressive way of thinking about football. Specifically, this new era was to usher in an emphasis on athleticism in the rebuild of the roster.

Rhule, most notably during his time at Temple University, placed a premium on players who were high-level athletes. Since the program at that time wasn’t held in the highest regard, landing coveted five-star recruits wasn’t easy. Instead, Rhule sought out prospects with particular abilities he felt could place shine upon. He wanted guys who exhibited the eye-opening speed, size and explosiveness that translates to all levels of the sport.

That approach to team-building, one he also carried over into his tenure at Baylor, would be one he and owner David Tepper highlighted when he was first hired.

And yet, with a chance to land the freakiest of freaks in Clemson’s do-it-all defensive prospect Isaiah Simmons with the seventh overall pick, they opted for Brown, who turned in one of the combine’s most disappointing displays of athletic testing in recent memory.

According to MockDraftable.com, Brown’s 40-yard dash (5.16 seconds), placed him in the 16th percentile of all defensive linemen in their expansive database. His vertical jump (27 inches) has him in the 12th percentile, his 20-yard shuttle (4.79 seconds) in the 10th and his 3-cone drill (8.22 seconds) in the first. Yeah, the first percentile.

Simmons, on the other hand, lit Indianapolis up for a 40-yard dash of 4.39 seconds (99th percentile for linebackers), a 132-inch broad jump (98th) and a vertical of 39 inches (91st).

Now, athleticism isn’t the be-all and end-all of determining a player’s future success in the NFL. There have been plenty of cases where elite athletes didn’t pan out as great players and poor athletes go on to have strong careers. However, with an opportunity to fetch the type of versatile talent this franchise says it wants to build its rock upon, they took a one-dimensional hog molly.

In addition to his athletic testing, Brown’s tape and production (12.5 sacks in four years) isn’t all that encouraging for his hopes of developing a consistently effective pass-rushing presence. He needs more than a bullrush in the arsenal and leaves much to be desired in terms of his technique, handwork and footwork.

The stature and strength is there, just not the game-wrecking talent you’d expect from a top-10 pick. They’re not getting a monster in the mold of Aaron Donald or Fletcher Cox—the type of interior defenders who are worth this high of an investment.

At the very least, Brown will help plug up what was a historically porous run defense. The Panthers allowed 143.5 rushing yards per game (29th in the NFL) as well as the most yards per carry (5.2) and rushing touchdowns (31) in 2019.

So, again, addressing that weakness was not a surprise. He’s a solid prospect and by all accounts a fine person to help establish that hard-working culture that Matt Rhule wants.

Brown will be fine.

What won’t be fine is that this three-headed monster consisting of Rhule, Tepper and general manager Marty Hurney continue to send mixed signals about what they’re doing.

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Panthers owner David Tepper urges more donations to combat coronavirus

Tepper has donated $22 million of his own money to help relief efforts so far.

Some things are much bigger than football and that’s never been more clear than right now as the coronavirus pandemic ravages the United States and countries around the world. Panthers owner David Tepper is urging people who have the ability to give to step up with more donations.

Here’s what Tepper said, according to Forbes.

“Here, it’s people losing their ability to make money, and that time period doesn’t have a certain end, which also creates a specific challenge for what you do with any kind of philanthropy… We hope that everybody steps up. . . I think in general, in times of need, people have to step up if they have the ability to step up. Period.”

Tepper has donated $22 million of his own money to help relief efforts so far. His net worth is around $12 billion, per Forbes. 

Players have also gotten involved in the fight. All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey has started a funding program called 22 and You, pledging funds for healthcare providers in both North and South Carolina. 

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