Carolina Panthers Ongoing thread ...

Balljim55 said:

Great game! The offense is rounding into form and we have Olsen back for the Jets game.
Was concerned about the WR drops in the first half but they got their stuff together
Hate to see that Samuel will be out for the rest of the year.
Fun Fun looks like a legit #1. On his two TDs he showed speed that KB does not have
Most importantly Cam has his mojo back

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GoldenSpur said:

Yeah, that sucked about Samuel. We're gonna be a no-name crew out there at wideout. OTOH, that's kind of how it was in '15 when KB was out. When Cam doesn't have a main guy, seems to make him go through his progressions and distribute the ball more evenly. CMC is giving more production, and it was definitely good to see the run game back.

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Balljim55 said:

It will be interesting to see how Byrd is when he comes back from his broken arm. He looked great in preseason albeit against scrubs

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The Panthers have worked to remake their wide receiver position this offseason, which means offloading the leftovers from last year.

According to Joe Person of the Charlotte Observer, the Panthers are releasing veteran wideout Russell Shepard today, after he refused their offer of a pay cut.

The move clears $2.1 million worth of cap room. Previous General Manager Dave Gettleman signed Shepard to a three-year, $10 million deal last offseason, and Shepard responded with 17 catches for 202 yards and a touchdown.

The Panthers traded for Torrey Smith and signed Jarius Wright and drafted D.J. Moore in the first round, so they were obviously serious about the rebuild.

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GoldenSpur said:

Yeah, Shepard didn't contribute in any significant way.

There's going to be some serious competition now though, with Smith, Wright, Moore, and Damiere Byrd and hopefully Samuel back from injuries. Should be a lot more speed out there. Glad to see that.

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Even with some thinking the value of sports teams is about to skyrocket with the addition of potential gambling revenues, the sale of the Panthers is proceeding as planned.

According to Seth Wickersham and Adam Schefter of ESPN, Steelers minority partner David Tepper is expected to sign the deal to buy the Panthers from Jerry Richardson today.

That keeps the transaction on track to be approved at the owners meeting in Atlanta next week.

Tepper didn’t lodge the high bid in the process, but he did have the biggest stack of cash, and the blessing of a group of owners who had already invited him into their club. And with Richardson still being investigated for workplace misconduct after last year’s reports of sexual and racial harassment, that gave the league a bit of leverage to nudge the process in a certain direction.

There were reports that other bids were in the $2.5 billion range, while Tepper’s was in the $2.1 billion to $2.2 billion range.

Lawyers were still going through the final points of the sale yesterday in Charlotte, and no speed bumps are expected in the deal.

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GoldenSpur said:

Let's just hope Tepper keeps the team in Charlotte.

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Now it’s official.

The Panthers announced the sale of the team to Steelers minority partner David Tepper, setting the stage for his being approved at next week’s owners meetings in Atlanta.

“I am thrilled to have been selected to be the next owner of the Carolina Panthers,” Tepper said in a statement from the team. “I have learned a great deal about the community and the team over the past several months and look forward to becoming part of the Carolinas. I want to thank Jerry Richardson and the other Panthers partners for all they have done to establish and develop the NFL in the Carolinas. It has been a remarkable 25-year journey and I promise to build upon the Panthers’ success on the field and in the community.”

Tepper was able to buy the team after Richardson put it up for sale hours after a Sports Illustrated story regarding his alleged workplace misconduct.

That closed the book on the run of the only former NFL player to own a team, as the North Carolina-native said goodbye.

“Bringing the Panthers and the NFL to the Carolinas in 1993 was enormously fulfilling for Rosalind and me and all of our partners,” Richardson said. “We are deeply grateful for the outpouring of support over the last 25 years. You have taken the Panthers into your hearts and made them part of this warm and supportive community. We want to thank all of our past and present players, coaches and staff for their hard work in making the Panthers a great success both on the field and in the community. The personal relationships we have enjoyed have been very meaningful to us.

“I look forward to turning the stewardship of the Panthers over to David Tepper. I have enjoyed getting to know him in this process and am confident that he will provide the organization with great leadership in both its football and community initiatives. I wish David and his family the very best as they enter this exciting new phase of their lives.”

The sale might not close until July, but the league was eager to get Tepper into the club on a bigger basis, making him one of the richest in a club of very rich people.

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Panthers wide receiver Curtis Samuel‘s rookie season came to an early end due to an ankle injury that required a surgical repair.

Word early in the offseason was that the hope was for Samuel to be ready to return at training camp in August, but that schedule may have been pushed up a little bit. Multiple reports from Carolina’s OTA practice on Tuesday have Samuel on the field going through drills and Jourdan Rodrigue of the Charlotte Observer shared a video that showed the 2017 second-round pick running well.

Samuel was acquired in order to provide the Panthers with a versatile weapon that was lacking them heading into last season, but his impact was limited to 15 catches, four carries and 10 kickoff returns before he went down for the year.

The Panthers drafted another receiver early this year when they took DJ Moore in the first round and the team brought in veterans Torrey Smith and Jarius Wright to go with Devin Funchess, so Samuel’s role on offense this season isn’t clear. A full offseason of work should help his chances of finding one and making good on the potential he showed while at Ohio State.

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GoldenSpur said:

Yeah, that's good news. He badly fubar'd that ankle, it was gruesome. Hopefully, he'll retain his speed.

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Wolfpack_Jac said:

I can't wait to see the one - two punch of Christian McCaffrey and CJ Anderson in the back field.

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