Panthers owner David Tepper said several years ago in the latest episode of his team’s turn against the deceased All or nothing series on Amazon that the NFL is set up for each team to cluster around .500, and the difference comes in having the right quarterback.
“This league should be an 8-8 league,” Tepper said at the time. “Everything is fair in this league. So if you have better coaches, better GMs, advantages with facilities, advantages with training, management process, whatever, whatever, you know, analytics, whatever whether it’s to give you an edge, that’s what you need. And you need a good quarterback.
Tepper, for five years as the team’s owner, couldn’t get one. Now, with a bold move to first place on the first lap, he has a shot at getting one.
This is one of the advantages of the project. Rarely, if ever, do the best prospects pass on their assigned destinations. And there’s no reason to think that will happen to the Panthers, not with Frank Reich as coach and a staff that will turn a young quarterback into the franchise player the Panthers haven’t had since Cam Newton was at its peak. They still have to make the right decision.
Twelve years after Newton arrived via the No. 1 pick, the Panthers get another shot at a franchise guy. Of course, they could decide that multiple players fit the bill, allowing them to trade, grab assets, and still find a guy they believe in. It won’t be an easy decision, given that the drop rate of the top 10 quarterbacks remains significant.