Earlier today, I posted an item containing quotes from Panthers owner David Tepper’s Tuesday press conference regarding the firing of coach Frank Reich. In my effort to get the words right, I missed something.
A high-level source with another team did not.
Here’s the key portion, regarding Tepper’s involvement in decision-making: “I have the final say. But as far as those decisions, whether it’s Frank Reich or it’s Bryce Young, those decisions were made, and in the case of Bryce it was almost — I believe it was a unanimous decision, and the coaches and the scouts had very strong opinions at the time.”
In the opinion of the source, this part potentially amounts to a Freudian slip: “In the case of Bryce it was almost — I believe it was a unanimous decision.”
Tepper was starting to say it was almost a unanimous decision, before he corrected himself.
The broader point is that, once everyone knew what Tepper wanted, it became unanimous. Because why stand out as a lone voice of dissent?
If it was a slip from Tepper, someone did. At least initially.
“It was almost — I believe it was a unanimous decision.”
I believe it currently is a mess in Carolina, and there’s nothing the fans can do about it. Ownership has its privileges. And the biggest privilege is that whatever the owner says goes.
