David Tepper’s Panthers Fire GM Scott Fitterer After NFL’s Worst Record in 2023

Joseph Zucker@@JosephZuckerFeatured Columnist IVJanuary 8, 2024

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The Carolina Panthers are now looking for a new general manager along with a head coach.

Team owner David Tepper announced Monday he fired GM Scott Fitterer.

“As we move forward with the new direction for our franchise, I have made the decision that Scott Fitterer will no longer serve as our general manager,” he said. “I appreciate Scott’s efforts and wish the best for him and his family.”

The move comes a day after a 9-0 loss that relegated Carolina to a league-worst 2-15 record.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Saturday that Fitterer was expected to be let go. Few Panthers fans will look back on his tenure, which began in 2021, fondly.

Carolina has little to show from his work in the draft so far.

Cornerback Jaycee Horn, the No. 8 overall pick in 2021, has appeared in just 22 games through three years. Wide receiver Terrace Marshall Jr., a second-round pick that year, has caught 64 passes for 767 yards and a touchdown in 36 games.

In 2022, Fitterer traded up to take quarterback Matt Corral, who’s no longer with the team. Using a top-10 pick on offensive tackle Ikem Ekwonu didn’t stop the team from allowing the second-most sacks (65) this year.

Then there’s the Bryce Young pick. On its own, taking Young might be viewed as a mistake in retrospect, and it will be compounded by the fact the Panthers lost what proved to be the No. 1 overall pick for 2024 in the process.

ESPN’s David Newton also wrote how “Fitterer will be remembered as much for the trade he didn’t make as for the big trade he made.”

The Christian McCaffrey trade has aged slightly poorly but isn’t working out terribly for the Panthers. Declining an offer of two first-round picks for pass-rusher Brian Burns, on the other hand, remains an almost unforgivable error.

Overall, it’s fair to question how much of the blame for Carolina’s personnel missteps lays at the door of Fitterer, though.

Tepper has already earned a reputation for being a meddlesome owner who’s impatience is hurting the franchise.

The owner was ultimately the one who signed off on not only hiring Matt Rhule but also handing him a seven-year, $62 million contract. In addition, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio reported in November some around the NFL believe “the Panthers drafted Bryce Young because Tepper wanted him.”

Tepper pushed back on that idea in his press conference after firing head coach Frank Reich:

NFL on CBS 🏈 @NFLonCBSPanthers owner David Tepper was asked if it was true that Frank Reich wanted C.J. Stroud over Bryce Young.

“In the case of Bryce, it was almost- I believe it was a unanimous decision by the coaches and the scouts.” pic.twitter.com/1AgYuNQarN

Two things can be true. Fitterer left the Panthers in a worse state than he found them, but he was dealt a difficult hand from the start thanks to the ownership situation.

Between getting to hire both a head coach and a lead decision-maker on football matters, Tepper will for better or worse get to reshape the Panthers how he sees fit.