The Carolina Panthers Shocked The NFL World By Firing Their GM A Week Before Camp

The Carolina Panthers were in the Super Bowl 18 months ago, but after missing the playoffs this past season, pressure seemed to be mounting on the staff and front office to put the right pieces in place around Cam Newton to make another playoff run in the near future and not waste away his prime years. And so, general manager Dave Gettleman set out to do just that, drafting Christian McCaffery, Curtis Samuel, and Taylor Moton — two play-making back/receivers and an offensive linemen — in the first two rounds.

Despite getting through the draft and free agency, Panthers ownership apparently wasn’t pleased with his performance and made the stunning announcement on Monday afternoon that Gettleman had been relieved of his duties.

“After much thought and a long evaluation of our football operations, I have decided to relieve Dave Gettleman of his duties as general manager,” owner Jerry Richardson said. “I want to thank Dave for the role he played in our success over the past four seasons. While the timing of this decision is not ideal, a change is needed.”

The timing of the decision isn’t just “not ideal,” as Richardson so matter of factly stated, it’s downright shocking. We’ve seen strange timing on front office firings before, but for it to happen in the weeks leading up to training camp — when there’s arguably no more important person in the organization than the general manager — is stunning. Training camp requires tough decisions to be made about who stays on the roster and who gets cut, as they prepare for the season, and to change who makes those decisions weeks before they have to happen is a major organizational shift.

One would expect the Panthers would expedite the search process to give their new GM as much time as possible to get to know the roster before he must make cuts, but if you’re a fringe player (or their agent) that has spent time trying to build a relationship with the front office, any confidence you had in being kept around is now likely out the window.

The surprise announcement sent the NFL world into a frenzy, as people tried to figure out what the Panthers were doing, but two former players that Gettleman let walk seemed perfectly fine with the news.

https://twitter.com/89stevesmith/status/886992866479710208

Smith and Norman being let go unceremoniously recently, along with outstanding contract needs of Thomas Davis and Greg Olsen, caused many to wonder if Richardson was tired of Gettleman not giving beloved veterans their just due in his eyes — and of course people had Game of Thrones jokes, too.

https://twitter.com/billbarnwell/status/886989619220402177