The Panthers Front Office doesn't care what you think

[uncpanther]

I personally like the way this team is being managed there are no emotional contracts that are given based on loyalty to players in the dowside, this is what got us in cap hell to begin with, with hurney.

Sent from my HTC One X using CarolinaHuddle mobile app

[t96]

Okay, about this whole "it's a business" thing, and specifically the ostensible business gurus on this particular message board chiding everyone else for not knowing as much businessy business as they do. Yeah, I can see how you saving money on players and clearing more cap space is a business decision, but the problem with this whole business analogy, is that player salaries aren't where franchises make money.

 

Last I checked, franchises make money from US, the fans. WE pay for tickets, WE pay for $9 beers, WE pay for merchandise. So if you are going to insist on sticking with this "it's a business" mantra, then keep this in mind: What pays their bills is what keeps us happy, and the tens of millions they gain by cutting Smith is insignificant compared to the hundreds of millions they stand to lose by pissing off the loyal fans and putting a crappy product on the field.

 

So to those who keep saying it's a business decision, here is a business analogy for you: You own a restaurant. And to save a couple thousand dollars per month, you cut your most popular item (Did I say most popular? I meant all-time best selling, Michelin star rated, and Zagat reviewed dish) from the menu, and replace it with...well nothing basically. You've promised the customers that you're going to replace it with something similar eventually, but something much cheaper, and you're not really sure of the quality. So yeah, you saved a couple bucks, but you just gave a HUGE middle finger to your customers. But even so, you expect them to come back and keep shelling out money like they used to, because hey! After all it's the same restaurant isn't it?

 

Business.

 

Right on brothers and sisters, this man knows his stuff.

[jayflip]

And I say all of this with a broken heart, by the way. I love 89. It's just the nature of the beast is all.

[t96]

I just want to add, I'm sorry for my rants and outbursts and I'm sorry if I've offended anybody. I'm just very upset and distressed over the 89 situation and haven't gotten any sleep in 3 days. I'll stay out of it for a little bit. 

[frash.exe]

I know right I'm the customer and the fat guy that does restaurant stakeout told me the customer's always right now they quoted me a 25 minute wait time and it's been five minutes what's the hold up I bet nobody's doing work back there and are texting away on their SMARTPHONES

[pantherclaw]

Many, including the author of the OP, need to grow up.

[csx]

974 ways to say the same thing 

[top dawg]

Sorry folks, the FO does not care what people think.

They don't care what the players think...

They don't care what the coaches think...

They don't care about the Panthers heritage or the legacy of its players...

And they sure as shlt don't care about its fans...

...all they care about is money. The easy cop out you hear time and time again, is "the NFL is a business." Which it's true, it is a business, it's an entertainment business. Winning is a big part of being "entertained". But equally, a big part of the entertainment is the faces that represent your business. And sometimes you have to make sacrifices, at the risk of losing money, to ensure your customers are happy.

It is very sad and embarrassing how the Panthers "Corporation" has handled the Steve Smith situation. I would not be surprised if the FO also mishandled other vets with no respect (i.e. Gross).

So from here on out, I will no longer refer to the Front Office as FO, but rather, FU.

 

 

The FU: that's classic.

 

 LMAO.

 

Even the most ardent supporter of G-man and the gang has to be one cold ass dead fish---or just a plain tool---not to appreciate the creativity, humor,  and decidedly apropos "new" moniker that you, and now others, are now adopting.

 

FU, it is.    :lol: 

 

 

[venom]

Panthers have shareholders. They invested in this team and they want return on their investment. Sorry to break it to you but that's how almost every business in America works.

Well it's a shame that everything is "business-ized" these days. Smith is family, not to mention the best thing that ever happened to the panthers, and they just spit in his face.

 

[QCkilla]

And you need to understand business better. Why do people go into business and start businesses? Some do it solely for the money. But some do it for the passion of whatever business it is, for example Sal in the movie "Do The Right Thing." Despite racial tensions, he loved making pizzas and seeing children in the neighborhood grow up on his food. Another reason for going into business is to provide a good or service to help people. Why is the NFL successful? The only reason is the fans and that's why the NFL is much worse now than it was before. All fans are complaining about the new rules and preventing defenses from hitting hard without getting a penalty, yet Goodell is doing nothing about it. I don't think there's a single NFL fan who honestly likes Goodell. NFL teams can be businesses focused on winning, but the #1 priority is to make the fan base happy. They're paying the bills. If the majority of the Panthers fans would rather have Smith and no guaranteed Super Bowl (and that's what it seems like) than no Smith and a Super Bowl, then that would be the right decision, regardless of what it means for the teams chances at winning. Which is right? It's all a matter of opinion and it's a tough decision, but what the fans want IS the most important thing. JR has understood that, and Hurney understood that (but that was his fatal flaw because he completely abused it and overdid it and handed out terrible contracts). The tough part of being a GM is putting together a squad that is respectable with decisions making the fans happy, and also being successful in the win category. There's a reason a lot of people hate the Patriots and their fans... And it's not because they win. It's because they are a classless franchise and classless fans who don't care about loyalty to players. If benching Brady and then cutting him meant them winning a Super Bowl, they'd be all in. Gettleman right now is making us like the Patriots, and I can't stand it. I don't care about winning if you win without any class. There is a way to balance it, and many teams have done it and been successful with Super Bowl wins.

The fans want wins, and I assume that's what they're trying to do. None of us have a damn clue how to run an NFL team or else we would be doing it. Have a little faith that they're trying to make our team better because, in a small market, the team has to win for them to make money. Are the fans going to be pissed? Absolutely. But they'll forget all about it if it results in wins.

[PanthersBigD]

Gettleman has shown us a lot, but one thing he hasn't shown us is that he's classless. He hasn't commented on this situation at all, and I think that's wise on his part. He's an intelligent man, and I'm sure he knows that there's no way for him to come out of this smelling like roses. There's nothing he can say or do to achieve his objective without looking like the bad guy.

 

 

[PantherFeez]

Well they should, without us there would be no team in Charlotte.

 

FIFY. There would be a franchise in a different city. If it wasn't for Jerry there would be no team here. If it wasn't for the Panther organization that drafted Steve Smith, no one would be pissed off right now. He wouldn't be a legend to any of us.

 

Thank you for the "Panthers corporation" for bringing me joy every Sunday after 5 days of hard work. We owe it to them for running a business successful enough to run in a small market while other cities WISH they had what we have. They'd poach the Panthers in a heart beat given the chance.

 

Be grateful and stick with it through the ups and downs if you're a true fan. Be grateful that there's something so important in your life that you're angry about what's happened.

[PanthersBigD]

Well it's a shame that everything is "business-ized" these days. Smith is family, not to mention the best thing that ever happened to the panthers, and they just spit in his face.

 

 

Explain how they 'spit in his face.' I'm not being obtuse, I haven't seen anyone offer up any examples of anything the front office has done or not done that would constitute 'spitting in his face.'

[EightyNine]

Okay, about this whole "it's a business" thing, and specifically the ostensible business gurus on this particular message board chiding everyone else for not knowing as much businessy business as they do. Yeah, I can see how you saving money on players and clearing more cap space is a business decision, but the problem with this whole business analogy, is that player salaries aren't where franchises make money.

 

Last I checked, franchises make money from US, the fans. WE pay for tickets, WE pay for $9 beers, WE pay for merchandise. So if you are going to insist on sticking with this "it's a business" mantra, then keep this in mind: What pays their bills is what keeps us happy, and the tens of millions they gain by cutting Smith is insignificant compared to the hundreds of millions they stand to lose by pissing off the loyal fans and putting a crappy product on the field.

 

So to those who keep saying it's a business decision, here is a business analogy for you: You own a restaurant. And to save a couple thousand dollars per month, you cut your most popular item (Did I say most popular? I meant all-time best selling, Michelin star rated, and Zagat reviewed dish) from the menu, and replace it with...well nothing basically. You've promised the customers that you're going to replace it with something similar eventually, but something much cheaper, and you're not really sure of the quality. So yeah, you saved a couple bucks, but you just gave a HUGE middle finger to your customers. But even so, you expect them to come back and keep shelling out money like they used to, because hey! After all it's the same restaurant isn't it?

 

Business.

Do you think the fact that they went against what is popular shows that maybe it wasn't about saving money?  Like you said, they have upset a good portion of their fan base..You said that upsetting the customer is not good for business, and i'm sure they're smart enough to understand that. To me, it seems like they went against what is popular because had a belief that our business would actually be more successful without him.  We haven't even released Smitty yet and your analogy assumes that we won't make an effort to replace him with a better alternative.

 

The unpopular decisions are the hardest ones to make.. Gettleman's job depends on winning. You have to understand that.