Tag: Nicole Tepper

Report: ‘The Teppers are letting the football people do the football things’

Report: Panthers owners David and Nicole Tepper are “showing confidence in general manager Dan Morgan and head coach Dave Canales.”

The change may very well be real for the Carolina Panthers.

Tomorrow’s matchup against last year’s NFC East champion Dallas Cowboys will kick off with the Panthers as the betting favorites, the first such instance for the team since the 2022 campaign. There are a few important factors to attribute that standing to—including a No. 1 overall pick who is actually playing like a No. 1 overall pick and a head coach whose game plan and vision have made a positive impact on the locker room.

There may, however, be another person or two to credit.

Dianna Russini, senior NFL insider for The Athletic, highlighted the organization’s recent turnaround in her newest column from Saturday morning. She notes that owners David and Nicole Tepper are “letting the football people do the football things.”

Russini writes:

Carolina Panthers owners David and Nicole Tepper strongly believe they have the right leaders in place. The owners are sticking with their vision for the future, showing confidence in general manager Dan Morgan and head coach Dave Canales. Both will be back next season, and it’s easy to see why — ownership is thrilled by the steady growth of second-year quarterback Bryce Young, who’s starting to show off his special qualities. Tepper has a high standard, and losing close games to good opponents still isn’t good enough, but this team is trending in a different direction than it was just two months ago.

The Teppers, particularly David, have received some criticism in the past for being a bit too hands-on with the football side of the operation.

Whether or not that’s fair, the results haven’t been kind to the billionaire businessman—who has cycled through four different full-time head coaches and 10 different starting quarterbacks in his seven years as owner. Those seven years, in addition, have failed to yield a single winning season.

But even at 3-10 as we enter Week 15, this losing record feels very different.

As Russini also wrote, the Panthers are “no longer beating themselves with costly mistakes” and have been remarkably competitive of late. Carolina—in their last three outings—nearly pulled off impressive upsets of the 12-1 Kansas City Chiefs, the 7-6 Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the 11-2 Philadelphia Eagles.

So while the wins still have to come, the outlook for the Panthers certainly feels the brightest it has in quite some time.

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Panthers HC Dave Canales says he met with owner David Tepper after Week 1 loss

Panthers HC Dave Canales says he met with owner David Tepper following Sunday’s 47-10 loss to the Saints.

Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales wants to continue to build a pretty important relationship with a pretty important pair of people—even on his bad days.

Canales spoke with reporters following this afternoon’s practice, the first official session since his rough head-coaching debut on Sunday. He was asked if he’s had the opportunity to speak with owner David Tepper after his team’s 47-10 loss to the New Orleans Saints.

“Yeah, absolutely,” Canales replied. “I talked to him. And, of course, these are people that I wanna make proud of what we’re doing here and what we’re building. So, it means a lot to me to make sure that I connect with him, to connect with Nicole [Tepper]—to be able to talk about just the state of our organization, just kinda following up on games.

“I look forward to that process. So we had some good times to connect after the game. Those are private conversations that I’ll keep to myself. But a lot of support.”

This shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. After all, the Panthers—in their official announcement of his hiring, in fact—stated that Canales would report directly to Tepper.

Anyway, Dave also had a special message for David.

“Happy birthday, by the way, David,” Canales later added while looking into the hard camera from the presser. “I hope you’re having a great time with the family.”

Tepper turns 67 years old today.

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Panthers HC Dave Canales gives early impressions of owners David, Nicole Tepper

Panthers HC Dave Canales on the Teppers: “I see a couple who is really passionate about their team.”

So, what is it like working for the Teppers?

New Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales was the featured guest on Tuesday’s episode of The Season with Peter Schrager. Host Peter Schrager (obviously) asked Canales about the early stages of his working relationship with team owners David and Nicole Tepper.

“That’s been fantastic,” he replied. “I see a couple who is really passionate about their team. And sometimes, Nicole more than David—she just like absolutely loves Panthers football. And the whole thing, the community—she’s like so fired up to serve and find, like, ‘Who can we bless? Who can we go and spread this . . . ?’ Her deal’s like, ‘I just wanna come out to practice and enjoy the energy of what I’m seeing.'”

The feeling seems to be mutual with Nicole, who has previously lauded Canales for his energy and his attention to detail.

And what about David?

“And with David—to be able to be with him and pick his brain and, like, lean on the successes that he’s had. He’s unbelievably successful in terms of like when we think of leadership and all those things. I’m able to kinda sit with him and watch him just, like, courageously bring us together. ‘Ok, let’s evaluate free agency. Let’s evaluate the draft process. How did that go, guys? How was it? What went well? What didn’t go well? Why not?’

“And there’s no blame, there’s none of that. It’s just like can we speak the truth? Can we go into things with our eyes open and courageously say, ‘Ok, this didn’t work, let’s fix it, let’s move forward?'”

Dave is David’s third head-coaching choice over the last five years.

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Panthers owner Nicole Tepper: I can talk film with HC Dave Canales for hours

Panthers owner and CAO Nicole Tepper shared the moment when she knew Dave Canales was the right guy for the HC job.

If Nicole Tepper wasn’t a film buff before this offseason, she may be one now.

The Carolina Panthers owner and chief administrative officer was the first of three special guests on today’s Bank of America Stadium-based episode of Up & Adams. Host Kay Adams asked Tepper about her impressions of the team’s new head coach Dave Canales.

“He has a passion for people,” she replied. “He has an uncanny ability to make this complicated game so simple. He worked 13 years for one of the greatest coaches of all-time, Pete Carroll. I mean, that in itself is amazing.

“I mean, you have to be hidden under a rock if you haven’t seen what he did last year to Baker Mayfield. I mean, the two of them together was dynamic, and he was a big part of that, right?

“He’s a visionary. I’m excited for him, and you wanna play for him, you wanna work for him.”

Tepper’s Panthers officially hired Canales back on Jan. 25. The 42-year-old served as the offensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2023 and worked under Carroll in Seattle—as a wide receivers coach, quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator—from 2010 to 2022.

Adams then asked Tepper if there was a moment where she knew Canales was the guy for the job.

“I think he was breaking down film in the second interview process, and I did not want it to stop,” Tepper said. “Like, I wanted him to keep going. I wanted to listen more. I would’ve sat down and talked film with him, or listen to him break down film, for hours.”

Maybe the Panthers might have themselves a high-profile guest in the film room for now on.

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Report reveals braintrust behind Panthers’ GM search

Per CBS Sports, the Panthers’ GM search included owners David and Nicole Tepper, team president Kristi Coleman and senior assistant coach Jim Caldwell.

So, who was in on the Carolina Panthers’ decision to stay local?

On Monday, the organization announced the promotion of now-former assistant general manager Dan Morgan to the president of football operations and general manager posts. And according to CBS Sports lead NFL insider Jonathan Jones, here’s who was included in the braintrust that ultimately landed on the former linebacker:

According to sources, Tepper captained the search for his next GM along with his wife, Nicole, team president Kristi Coleman, Panthers senior assistant coach and longtime NFL head coach Jim Caldwell and Mike Forde, who heads the search firm Sportsology.

ESPN senior NFL insider Adam Schefter reported on Jan. 6 that the Panthers were entering their hunt with Forde and Sportsology. The firm also has past experience with the Atlanta Falcons, Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers as well as with Tepper’s head-coaching search for Charlotte FC from last month.

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Nicole Tepper, Scott Fitterer among interested observers at Wednesday’s practice

The Panthers had a number of attentive onlookers during OL vs. DL drills on Wednesday, including owner Nicole Tepper and GM Scott Fitterer.

The Carolina Panthers had a who’s who of onlookers at practice on Wednesday—and it wasn’t just for kicks.

As noted by both Joe Person of The Athletic and Mike Kaye of The Charlotte Observer, owner Nicole Tepper was particularly attentive of this afternoon’s offensive line vs. defensive line drills. Tepper was joined by “many others” during that portion of the session—including general manager Scott Fitterer, assistant general manager Dan Morgan, head coach Frank Reich and senior defensive assistant Dom Capers.

With the daunting Dallas Cowboys defense coming to town for a tough matchup on Sunday, Carolina’s overwhelmed offensive line will certainly be a point of emphasis for Week 11—especially given the struggles of rookie quarterback Bryce Young. According to Pro Football Focus, the No. 1 overall pick has been pressured on 132 of his dropbacks—the fifth-most in the league thus far.

The unit will have a different look this week, as the Panthers released starting left guard Calvin Throckmorton yesterday. Rookie Chandler Zavala and 2022 sixth-round pick Cade Mays are possibilities to take over on the vacated spot.

Oh, and some guy named Luke Kuechly was there today as well . . .

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WATCH: Julius Peppers gets his Panthers Hall of Honor call from David Tepper

Watch as franchise legend Julius Peppers gets his call to the Panthers Hall of Honor from David and Nicole Tepper.

When Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper recently video chatted Julius Peppers, he seemed a bit surprised by how svelte the franchise great is. But the surprise Tepper had for Peppers was a tad heavier.

On Monday, the team announced the former defensive end—as well as former wide receiver and teammate Muhsin Muhammad—would be inducted into its Hall of Honor later this season. Now, a little over 24 hours later, they revealed the very moment in which the 43-year-old legend was made aware of that little detail:

Peppers was born in Wilson, N.C. on Jan. 18, 1980. He’d go on to establish a legacy in his home state—playing his high school ball at Southern Nash in Bailey and his college ball at the University of North Carolina.

The two-sport star, who was a bit better at football than the b-ball, was then taken by the Panthers with the second overall pick of the 2002 NFL draft. Peppers proceeded to rack up 10 of his 17 pro seasons in Charlotte—where he’d amass a Defensive Rookie of the Year award, four All-Pro nods and five Pro Bowl selections.

His induction into the Hall of Honor will take place at halftime of the Panthers’ Week 8 contest against the Houston Texans on Oct. 29.

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Nicole Tepper made call to seal Panthers’ trade for DJ Johnson

The third episode of “Panthers Blueprint” revealed Nicole Tepper made the trade call that helped secure third-round pick DJ Johnson.

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Now famously known to be “in on every deal,” Carolina Panthers general manager Scott Fitterer never shies away from making a move. And while he generally prefers to move back when it comes to swapping draft capital, he made an exception for not one, but two players this spring.

The first of which, of course, was quarterback Bryce Young. Carolina offered four premium picks and standout receiver DJ Moore to blitz atop the board back on March 10.

The second came during the draft itself with their third-round pick in outside linebacker DJ Johnson—who Fitterer talks about in the third and final episode of “Panthers Blueprint.”

“I love movin’ back because you acquire picks,” Fitterer said. “But sometimes when you get a player who fills a need, that fits the athletic profile and does exactly what you want—that’s when it’s worth it. That’s when you go up and take a shot.”

So, they did—shipping off the 93rd and 132nd picks to the Pittsburgh Steelers for the 80th to secure the University of Oregon pass rusher. Oh, and perhaps appropriately enough, it was Nicole Tepper who made the call to the Steel City in getting the deal done.

Chief Administrative Officer of Tepper Sports and Entertainment and wife of owner David Tepper, Nicole has played an integral part behind the scenes in recent years. From establishing a healthy culture within the organization to attending pro days, Tepper’s been a highly-acclaimed member of the Carolina braintrust.

And now, she can add “wheelin’ and dealin'” to the job list.

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Panthers owners David and Nicole Tepper to attend Ohio State Pro Day

The Panthers will have 11 sets of eyes, including those of owners David and Nicole Tepper, on C.J. Stroud at Ohio State’s Pro Day.

The Carolina Panthers will be rolling 11-deep for C.J. Stroud on Wednesday, with two very important people in tow.

We’ve already learned, courtesy of Darin Gantt of Panthers.com, that the organization will be sending a heavy contingent to the Ohio State University. A later report from MMQB senior NFL reporter Albert Breer, however, added four more names to the list—including owners David and Nicole Tepper.

The Teppers will be joining a group that already included general manager Scott Fitterer, assistant general manager Dan Morgan, vice president of football administration Samir Suleiman, head coach Frank Reich, offensive coordinator Thomas Brown, quarterbacks coach Josh McCown and senior assistant Jim Caldwell. Scouting director Cole Spencer and scout Joel Patten, as Breer adds, will also be making the trip.

They will all be there, of course, for Stroud—who may very well be this year’s No. 1 overall pick and the next quarterback of the franchise. The standout Buckeye, in fact, is the most recent odds-on favorite to be selected atop the 2023 NFL draft.

No pressure, C.J.

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Report: Panthers now in compliance with mandated inclusive hiring training

Per ESPN’s David Newton, the Panthers are now in compliance with the NFL’s mandated inclusive hiring training after a hangup regarding Nicole Tepper.

The Carolina Panthers can now proceed.

Last night, CBS Sports lead NFL insider Jonathan Jones reported that the organization received a call from a league executive on Wednesday regarding a possible violation in their search for a new head coach. The subject of the hangup was Nicole Tepper, Chief Administrative Officer of Tepper Sports & Entertainment and wife of team owner David Tepper.

Per the NFL’s practices for inclusive hiring training, Tepper did not fulfill the requirements necessary to be a part of the franchise’s search committee. A Panthers spokesman was quoted as saying Tepper did participate in training prior to the five interviews that have already taken place, but did not specify to what degree.

Well, less than two days later, the Panthers are now all clear.

According to ESPN’s David Newton, the team is in compliance with the mandated inclusive hiring training.

Carolina has already spoken to Steve Wilks, Frank Reich, Jim Caldwell, Shane Steichen and Ejiro Evero about their vacancy. They are also planning to hold interviews with Sean Payton, Ken Dorsey and Mike Kafka in the near future.

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