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.
Former Panthers owner Jerry Richardson had a long, and at times disgraceful, history. The Panthers are right in removing his statue.
Jerry Richardson was a receiver out of Wofford who was selected in the 13th round of the 1958 NFL draft by the Baltimore Colts. He caught a touchdown pass from Johnny Unitas in the 1959 NFL championship game, and then became a very rich man due to his involvement in several food companies — Hardee’s, Spartan Foods, and Flagstar. In 1993, he became the first owner of the expansion Carolina Panthers, who played their first season in 1995. He held that position until 2017, when a number of scandals had him selling the team to David Tepper at the end of that season.
A December, 2017 report from L. Jon Wertheim and Viv Bernstein of Sports Illustrated revealed that Richardson had settled several complaints of inappropriate behavior. Per the report, Richardson would ask his female employees to turn around so that he could admire their backsides and make comments such as, “Show me how you wiggle to get those jeans up. I bet you had to lay down on your bed to fit into those jeans. Did you step into those jeans or did you have to jump into them?”
At least four employees settled financial agreements with Richardson in exchange for their vows of silence.
Dec 17, 2017; Charlotte, NC, USA; Panthers owner Jerry Richardson watches his team during the first quarter at Bank of America Stadium. (Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports)
Perceived from the outside as a champion of diversity because of his selection of Cam Newton with the first overall pick in the 2011 draft and the hire of head coach Ron Rivera the same year, Richardson was also capable of contemptible instances of behavior in this realm as well. After selecting Newton, Richardson famously asked the quarterback, “Did you get crazy after the draft and go out and get any tattoos or piercings? Do I have to check you for anything?” He also directed racial invective at one African-American scout.
In a recent appearance on the “Rapsheeet + Friends” podcast with Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, former and current Panthers safety Tre Boston told the story of his desire to protest as Colin Kaepernick and others were back in 2016. As Boston put it, he was discouraged from doing so by Richardson himself.
“In 2016, we saw a world that… even with peaceful protesting with Kap, we saw a world that didn’t understand, and was not willing to listen or hear what we were trying to say,” Boston said. “It was hard times. We were screaming back then, ‘Help.’ We need help. How can we help out our community so that we’re one? And it’s tough when you hear from the top down that the people who watch football come here to get away from that stuff, even though we had protesting going on the day of the game. So, to hear open-ended promises — them telling us to do nothing, we’ll get you in the community. Then, the next week comes around, the week after that comes around, and nothing’s been said to you. Nothing’s been brought up to put you in the community. They did what they wanted.”
This has made complicated the presence of the statue of Richardson in front of the team’s home for games, Bank of America Stadium. A gift from the team’s minority owners on Richardson’s 80th birthday, the statue has stood less as a tribute to Richardson’s accomplishments, and more as hard proof of some very bad decisions on the part of the former owner. As those decisions have been made more and more public, the rationale for keeping the statue in place has been harder to excuse.
Except that new owner David Tepper was contractually obligated to keep the statue of Richardson, as Jonathan Jones of Sports Illustrated (now of CBS Sports) reported in 2018:
From the jump, it was made clear to all interested buyers this was non-negotiable. The statue—that two years ago those around Richardson claimed he didn’t even want—had become part of the deal. Although I was told during the process that the sale would be an auction to the highest bidder, Tepper reportedly had the lowest offer among the three finalists (though the billionaire was ready to cut a check any day and the other bidders were searching for financing). If you’re coming in with a lower bid and this statue is near and dear to the heart of the seller, is it worth rocking the boat?
The one exception to this obligation was in the name of public safety, which is the exception the team will use to remove the statue.
We were aware of the most recent conversation surrounding the Jerry Richardson statue and are concerned there may be attempts to take it down. We are moving the statue in the interest of public safety.
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.
The statue of Jerry Richardson, Panthers founder is set to come down af 2 p.m. Current owner David Tepper purchased the franchise in 2018. Part of the contract included keeping this statue. pic.twitter.com/9Q4cO7neHN
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.
