THE PANTHERS FILE
Home field: Caesars Stadium
Coach: Matt Ruhle
Offensive star: RB Christian McCaffrey
Defensive star: DE Brian Burns
2021 Season: Failed to Make Playoffs
Super Bowls: None
Greatest Player: DE Julius Peppers
Factoid: Keep Pounding Drum rallying Panthers players and Panther fans with a singular chant.
By Lenn Robbins
Here’s the deal with young franchises. The history is being written. The traditions are being established. The identity is muddled. Such is the case with the Carolina Panthers.
They have had some terrific players in their 27-year history. LB Sam Mills was the little engine that could. DE Julius Peppers was the force that couldn’t be stopped. WR Steve Smith was the punishing pass catcher who abused defensive backs.
But quick!
Who are the Panthers? Are they tough, like the Steelers, flamboyant like the Cowboys, historic like the Packers, futile like the Jets?
The Panthers don’t check any box.
Which is pretty fitting going into this season. In running back Christian McCaffrey the team has a legit superstar, but he hasn’t been able to stay on the field the last two seasons. They have some talent on both sides of the ball but they also have a quarterback battle between Baker “The Commercial Maker” Baker and Sam Darnold, the first and second players taken in the 2018 NFL Draft.
And they have a coach, Matt Ruhle who can’t sit down because his seat is so scorching hot it would singe his pants and boxers. Ruhle, of course, signed a seven-year, $62 million deal to leave Baylor a day after telling his Bears players he wasn’t going anywhere.
So the Panthers also have a leadership/credibility problem.
Here’s the good news. A young franchise still has time to hone in on an identity. Perhaps Mayfield will win the starting quarterback job and play as he did as a rookie in 2018 and in 20202 when he was very good. Or maybe Darnold finally blossoms into an elite QB.
Or maybe Carolina can start from scratch and pick a new brand. The black panther has been extinct in North Carolina since 2011.