Mr. Scot

In his latest piece for The Athletic, Joe Person takes a look at David Tepper's role in both the recent coaching search and the process of Frank Reich building his staff in an effort to see whether it's worth reconsidering the at-times overwhelmingly negative image fans have had of the Panthers owner. Panthers owner David Tepper has stepped in it of late, but delivered on this promise (kudos to Joe for the title here) Excerpts, interspersed with some of my own commentary: (G)ive Tepper credit for putting his money where his mouth was to help Frank Reich build arguably the NFL’s most power-packed coaching staff, one that’s drawn universal praise in league circles. Tepper, the hedge fund manager whose net worth grew to $18.5 billion after the pandemic, has pointed out previously there’s no salary cap for coaches. Then he proved it, bankrolling a staff that includes two former head coaches (Jim Caldwell, Dom Capers), several former players (including Reich, Josh McCown and DeAngelo Hall) and two guys (Caldwell, Ejiro Evero) who interviewed for Reich’s job. In the case of Evero, the Panthers outbid Minnesota for the ex-Broncos defensive coordinator. Reich indicated that was not the only instance where Tepper’s money sealed the deal. Person starts off by chronicling the various failures that led to Tepper being what he calls "persona non grata" in the Charlotte area (I won't rehash them here) before talking about the staffing process. Evero is once again mentioned as being somebody that we "outbid' another team to get. For his part, Reich did say It wasn't a 'blank check' type situation, but credits Tepper's "no salary cap for coaches" approach with giving them the ability to compete for some guys that had multiple opportunities...and win. ... Tepper is a hands-on owner who spends a lot of time around the football offices. He helped persuade Ron Rivera to switch to a 3-4 defense before the 2019 season. His hesitation on Matthew Stafford — Tepper reportedly wanted more background on Stafford’s back injury — gave the Rams time to swoop and trade for the Lions’ quarterback. Tepper drove the Panthers’ interest in Deshaun Watson last year, a failed pursuit that cost them a chance to re-sign Haason Reddick. But at least in terms of putting together his staff, Reich was OK with Tepper’s involvement. “Mr. Tepper’s involvement was not intrusive, but was strong in the right way,” Reich said. “That’s been a pretty cool experience.” Interesting to see the description of Tepper as "a hands-on owner who spends a lot of time around the football offices. Reich is quick to mention though that he's not "intrusive" in the process. Sounds like Tepper might now have found a good balance on that front. I'd add you've gotta figure there's a lot to unpack in Reich's "pretty cool experience" comment regarding old boss Jim Irsay (and Person does just a little) but Reich doesn't seem like the type of guy who'd get too deep into that topic. He's previously been offered the chance to take a shot at Irsay but instead took responsibility himself for any issues with his Colts tenure. (how much of that is genuinely deserved is something you can judge for yourself) ... After admitting he ran a poor search three years ago before hiring Rhule, Tepper kept expanding his candidates list this time and sat in on every interview. Reich impressed Tepper and general manager Scott Fitterer with an extensive list of candidates for his staff positions. Besides encouraging Reich to keep special teams coordinator Chris Tabor and offensive line coaches James Campen and Robert Kugler, Tepper also nudged Reich to go outside his “circle” with some of his other hires. Reich had not worked with Evero or offensive coordinator Thomas Brown, both of whom interviewed for head-coaching opportunities this cycle. “(Tepper) has been involved in everything from Day 1. ‘Have you thought about this guy?’” Reich said. “What I’ve loved about how Mr. Tepper has approached it — whether it was a guy who he might have mentioned or a guy he didn’t mention — he’s doing his own vetting. And then we’re talking about it, and so is Scott. We've talked regarding Tepper's admission (of what was arguably obvious) before. So glad he now sees that for what it was. Also noteworthy is that the Panthers and Reich kinda followed Brian Daboll's example of going outside the circle of acquaintances when looking for the best assistants. I say "kinda" because part of me thinks it had as much or more to do with just not doing things the way Matt Rhule did them as anything else. Side Note: Reich has referred to Scott Fitterer numerous times in his early statements. Sounds like those two are likely going to have a good working relationship. ... The result was a well-regarded — and well-compensated — staff that includes a diverse mix of young and old, White and Black, and experienced and first-time coaches. While Tepper was criticized for not promoting interim coach Steve Wilks, the Panthers are the only team with Black offensive and defensive coordinators. Assembling a good staff is just the first piece of the puzzle. The Panthers need more impact players, starting at quarterback. And while Reich and Tepper are still in the honeymoon phase, the early signs are encouraging. Caldwell, the 68-year-old, former head coach in Indianapolis and Detroit, laughed Tuesday when asked about Tepper, saying he tries to avoid “examining my boss.” If one of my bosses had been Jim Irsay, I'd do that too Two catchphrases I've heard a lot from Reich so far are "diversity of thought" and "consistency of excellence". While those might not rival the beauty and complexity of things like "The Process', "The Brand" and "OOU", they can at least be described as less esoteric in nature. ... “I can just tell you that my initial impression of him (is) a very good man, really serious about making certain that it’s a great product here,” Caldwell added. “Wants to win in the worst way. A great guy to be around, but he’s driven.” Got a feeling that's not the first time someone has called David Tepper "driven" The bottom line here though is that Person paints a picture of a guy who's learned from his mistakes. A while back, Charles Robinson mentioned Tepper having earned a rep for being hard to work for. It's also known that Tepper is someone who's very conscious of how he's seen in the media so you'd have to expect that didn't escape his notice. At least for now though, Tepper seems to have found a much better balance between "hands-on" and "intrusive". He's actually letting the football people do their job... (which is all that many of us wanted) ... Some additional notes from Person: • At Reich’s introductory presser, it seemed contradictory that Tepper talked about moving away from a CEO-type coach in favor of someone with an offensive or defensive expertise, while Reich left open the possibility someone else might call the offensive plays. Maybe that would have been the case if the Panthers hired someone like Brian Johnson as offensive coordinator. Instead, Reich will call the offense while leaning on Brown, the former Rams assistant head coach who was the primary play caller for three years at the University of Miami. Having looked at both their resumés, I'm not so sure I agree with Person that Brian Johnson's would warrant more leeway way to call plays than Brown. That's his opinion though ... • Reich already has given thought to who would succeed Brown or Evero if they’re hired as head coaches, which would bring the Panthers’ a pair of third-round draft picks (for each instance) under Rooney Rule incentives. Reich believes Tabor also could be in the mix for head-coaching jobs. “All three of our coordinators are and are gonna be legit head-coaching candidates, so you have to think (of successors),” he said. “It would be foolish not to think that (way).” Jourdan Rodrigue described it as a pipeline. Someone else on here evoked the image of a football university. But regardless of your preferred metaphor, I love the approach. I think it could potentially put us in really good standing for something Panther fans have been craving since the beginning: sustained success. ... • Reich said he wasn’t ready to say whether the Panthers will bring free agent quarterback Derek Carr in for a visit because he and his staff have just started evaluating players. Carr, whose brother, David, played a season in Carolina, has already visited the Saints and Jets. Given Fitterer’s “in on every deal” philosophy, it would not be surprising if the Panthers at least kicked the tires on Carr, who turns 32 next month. Plenty of discussion on this topic already, but Person's take on it is pretty reasonable, similar to what Will Kunkel said yesterday. ... As an aside, I've criticized Person for what I considered some lazy writing in a few of his recent articles, but I have no such criticism of this one. It's a good piece. Kudos

I read the rationale. Jeremiah based the pick on the notion that we picked up a veteran quarterback. Still don't know about that pick at that spot given our current situation

He's now got something of a connection to us as well. Liam Coen, the Wildcats OC during his more successful 2021 season, spent the other two of his last three years working alongside our new OC out in Los Angeles. I'd imagine if Thomas Brown wants to know anything about Levis, he's got a pretty ideal source.

I don't know if he's that bad. Heck, he did fairly well against us last year. (granted that's a low standard)

Another bit of good news...

Yeah...I'm not even sure you know what that gif means, but It's probably not the flex you're hoping it to be. Keep trying, dude

I'm trying to think of an example that suits this statement It occurs to me that Jacob Eason could be decently suited to the practice squad role you describe. Likewise, Jacoby Brissett has been rightly mentioned as someone who knows Reich's offense and could fill the veteran role (cheaply).

The jokes just write themselves (he's not gonna get that statement but hey...)

Technically Mitch Marrow wasn't

I don't off the top of my head, outside of the previously mentioned situation with RG3 and Kirk Cousins. There was that time the Panthers took three in one draft (counting Armanti Edwards) but that was a debacle.

Burns isn't a free agent.

Gotta figure there will be some discussion of Bozeman today, but I don't know if this is something that's genuinely possible.

Still serves as a cautionary tale though... Also FYI, in his recent mock Joe Person has us trading up to third overall. He mentions the possibility of trading to five given the connections between Fitterer, Morgan and the Seahawks front office but feels like three is safer to acquire one of the guys they really want. For the record, his pick is Will Levis.

That it's extremely difficult is a valid observation. Interesting to note though that between McCown and Parks Frazier, an argument could be made that we have two legit quarterback coaches. That's unusual. And of course that's not to mention the other quarterback whisperers we have on staff. So yeah, there's a reason most teams don't try to do that, but...

In the meantime... Fun video

Yup, which is a mistake I'd really prefer not to see us repeat.

I remember thinking that seemed awfully high for a lineman.

Oy You know, I've never put anyone on "ignore" before, but I might do so in this case just because I don't feel like every thread I'm in needs the bother of this petty silliness (or silly pettiness) you've descended into now. I'll say this much: If the team ultimately decides not to pursue Derek Carr, I'll be okay with it. If they do though, I fear your head's going to explode.

The analogy is pretty clearly escaping you here.

Just so I'm clear, you plan to carry this particular psychotic break into every thread?

Reich also didn't say he liked CJ Stroud, so I guess we can presume he doesn't like him either.... ...or not. What Reich actually said was that he hadn't met with his staff to even begin going over things like our current roster, free agent options, draft picks, etc. And as has been said elsewhere, the front office likes Carr but won't presume on Reich the way the Colts did. Is that really such a hard thing to believe?

To be fair, Murray's also not very good. As far as true quarterback skills, Young is really good. But his size is... concerning.

Wrong...again. I don't "want" Carr so much as I'm okay with the idea of us signing him...and equally okay if we go in a different direction because I think our current leadership Is trustworthy (I've said as much multiple times). The nuance you miss (one of many) as far as the situation though is that it's not as simple as "I want this guy" or "I want that guy". When looking at acquiring a particular player, GMs and coaches have to look at things like injury history (and probability), cost and other factors. They don't just say "Well, he won MVP four years ago so let's give up ten picks to get him", at least not if they're smart. As mentioned, you have something you want to see happen and you filter every single thing through that lens. Quick hint: that kind of filter has a really nasty habit of distorting things. Hence why you keep saying things that multiple people have told you are off the mark or inconsistent. Prime example: Your suggestion that getting fired automatically proves you're bad. You say that because of Carr, but miss the fact that in doing so you're also saying the same thing about our head coach. And that's just one example, again, of many. Hence why I've tried a couple of times to tell you that you need to cool it on acting like you know more than others when you pretty clearly demonstrated that you don't. As mentioned before, It's okay to not know things...but when you don't and claim you do, well...