Panthers hire Scott Fitterer as team’s new general manager
The Carolina Panthers are hiring Seattle Seahawks vice president of football operations Scott Fitterer as the team’s new general manager. He will sign a five-year deal.
The search for the team’s next general manager was completed almost two weeks after the final game of the 2020 season. Fifteen candidates were interviewed. There were four finalists, whom the team met with for a second time.
“We went through a thorough process and it was a great final four,” team owner David Tepper said in a statement. “We thought Scott was the best fit for the organization.”
Fitterer, 47, will lead the way when it comes to personnel decisions, but Matt Rhule will have a role, as well. Tepper was one of the leaders of the hiring process with Rhule, and agreeing on a candidate was key.
“There has to be an alignment between the coach and the GM. The person has to be collaborator to certain sort, not afraid to make decisions,” Tepper said last month on what he would be looking for. “Collaboration doesn’t mean you don’t have arguments about who you’re picking. That doesn’t mean you’re not a better decision maker, somebody who’s a good manager.”
Fitterer worked alongside Seahawks GM John Schneider in an assistant GM type role and head coach Pete Carroll, who is more involved in personnel decisions than many other NFL head coaches. He was with Seattle in various roles since 2001, originally joining as an area scout and working with three head coaches during the course of his career. Fitterer has significant experience and expertise when it comes to college scouting. From 2011-14, he was the team’s director of college scouting and he recently also held the position of co-director of player personnel.
In the first four drafts with Fitterer as director of college scouting, the Seahawks selected 13 starters, including Russell Wilson, Earl Thomas and Richard Sherman. Other teams have considered him for GM openings in recent years.
“We are extremely happy for Scott and Cherish. Scott is going to be an amazing leader for the Carolina Panthers,” Schneider said in a statement. “While he will be missed here in Seattle, we are excited for his opportunity. Scott is very talented and his strengths are many: he is a great evaluator of people, an excellent communicator and a tremendous person.”
He started his career as a part-time scout for the New York Giants from 1998-2000. In college, he was a two-sport athlete playing quarterback in football and pitcher in baseball at UCLA (1992-94) and just baseball at LSU (1994-95). He was the Tigers’ closer in 1995. Fitterer then spent three years in the Toronto Blue Jays’ system after being drafted in the 22nd round, despite having two seasons of eligibility remaining in both football and baseball when he signed. He is from Burien, Washington, originally, a suburb south of Seattle. He was a four-year high school starter in football, basketball and baseball.
Fitterer was one of the last candidates to do an initial interview for the job after being a late addition, along with Pittsburgh Steelers vice president of football and business administration Omar Khan, after no decision was reached following 13 initial interviews. He first met with the team virtually Monday, and quickly impressed. Fitterer then flew to Charlotte for an in-person visit Wednesday.
The other three finalists were Tennessee Titans director of player personnel Monti Ossenfort, San Francisco 49ers vice president of player personnel Adam Peters and Kansas City Chiefs assistant director of player personnel Ryan Poles. All of the finalists had a more tradtional background in college scouting, and not as much the analytics side that Tepper has expressed considerable interest in. Two internal candidates were among the 15 interviewed: director of player negotiations and salary cap manager Samir Suleiman and director of player personnel Pat Stewart.
“I want everything to be collaborative, I want to work with somebody that wants to get the players and establish the vision that we established that we believe in,” Rhule said last week of what he would look for in a GM. “I’m not going to get caught up on little tags and things like that, I want to collaborate with someone that they wake up every morning, saying, ‘hey, how can I get the right players to make our offense, defense and special teams work.’”
Carolina is coming off a 5-11 record in its first season under Rhule. The Panthers hold the eighth overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft, and will consider taking a quarterback with that selection. Other big decisions need to be made in free agency with 17 players set to become unrestricted free agents, including right tackle Taylor Moton and wide receiver Curtis Samuel.
The franchise has never had back-to-back winning seasons.
Former general manager Marty Hurney was fired with two weeks remaining in the season. He had led the team’s personnel department since 2017, when he was initially hired by former owner Jerry Richardson on an interim basis to replace now New York Giants general manager Dave Gettleman. Hurney was also the Panthers’ GM from 2002-12.
The hiring marks the latest move as Tepper has overhauled the organization since purchasing the Panthers in 2018. Many of the highest ranking officials were now selected by him.
Rhule, Fitterer and the rest of the Panthers’ coaching staff will get a first-hand look at prospects in just over a week. Carolina is coaching against the Miami Dolphins in the Senior Bowl.
This story was originally published January 14, 2021 at 4:31 PM.
