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The Carolina Panthers reinvented their franchise following a disastrous 2023 season that saw them finish with the worst record in the National Football League (NFL). The team hired a new general manager. A new head coach. And brought in tons of new players.
So far, though, the song remains the same. Actually, it’s even worse than it was last year.
The Panthers began their 2024 campaign by getting blown out of the Louisiana Superdome by the New Orleans Saints – a team which entered the season ranked No. 24 out of the league’s 32 teams (the Panthers are last, in case you were wondering). Sunday’s 47-10 shellacking at the hands of the Saints was the fourth-worst defeat in Panther history.
It was also a stark reminder of just how far this franchise has to go – and how far franchise quarterback Bryce Young has to go – if a long-awaited return to the playoffs is something long-suffering fans can even start dreaming about again.
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Young, the No. 1 overall pick of the 2023 draft, completed just 13 of 30 passes (43.3 percent) Sunday against the Saints for 161 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions – including a pick on his first throw of the season. That atrocious stat line generated an anemic passer rating of 32.8, the worst of his career. He was also sacked four times behind an offensive line which received a $153 million upgrade during the offseason via the signing of former Miami guard Robert Hunt and former Seattle guard Damien Lewis.
Prior to the game, Young told reporters he had “all of the confidence in the world” in his retooled offensive line and “a ton of confidence in the scheme we have.”
Astoundingly, though, Young “looked worse than he ever did in his disappointing rookie season,” according to Sports Illustrated‘s Matt Alquiza.
“This disastrous opening to the season is likely a harbinger for things to come, and if it continues, we may be grading a different quarterback when the 2025 season kicks off next September,” Alquiza added.
Young told reporters after the game “I’ve got to do a better job” and repeatedly spoke about “turning the page.”
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Bryce Young speaks to the media. https://t.co/yigqAmqc8a
— Carolina Panthers (@Panthers) September 8, 2024
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How long before the Panthers turn the page on him, though?
In fairness, it wasn’t all Young’s fault. Carolina’s defense gave up points on New Orleans’ first nine possessions – five touchdowns and four field goals. But where Young needed to show progression, he showed regression instead.
For billionaire owner David Tepper, Sunday’s loss was the latest in a long line of humiliations since he purchased the franchise six years ago. Under Tepper’s “leadership,” the Panthers have posted an abysmal 31-69 (.310) record – failing to reach the playoffs or secure a winning season since he bought the team. Conversely, in the five years before Tepper became their owner, the Panthers went 54-31-1 (.621) – reaching the playoffs four times and making it to Super Bowl 50. During his tenure, Tepper has fired three coaches, run off the best player in the league (Christian McCaffrey) and alienated half of his team’s fan base in the Carolinas.
He’s also repeatedly shown his ass…
Regular members of our audience will recall Tepper agreed to move the Panthers’ corporate headquarters (and practice facility) to Rock Hill in 2019, a deal hailed as the signature economic development of S.C. governor Henry McMaster. The agreement collapsed, however, and in 2022 Tepper’s holding company filed for bankruptcy in Delaware.
My media outlet opposed that deal from the beginning.
“This is a bad deal. Period,” I wrote in March of 2019. “South Carolina should pass on the Panthers … and tell Tepper that while he is welcome to locate in the Palmetto State, he is not going to get paid to bring (his team) here.”
Carolina will try to get things back on track next Sunday (September 15, 2024) when they host the Los Angeles Chargers at Bank of America Stadium in downtown Charlotte. Kickoff is set for 1:00 p.m. EDT.
BANNER VIA: Carolina Panthers/X
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
Will Folks is the owner and founding editor of FITSNews. Prior to founding his own news outlet, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina, bass guitarist in an alternative rock band and bouncer at a Columbia, S.C. dive bar. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.
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