Carolina Panthers GM sets says this high goal for team is ‘definitely within reach’
Scott Fitterer, the Carolina Panthers’ general manager, doesn’t think a team with a new coach, new quarterback and 24 new faces on the 53-man roster should be aiming low.
In a press conference Thursday, 10 days before the Panthers open the 2023 regular season at Atlanta, Fitterer said the Panthers aspired this year to win the NFC South division. That accomplishment would put head coach Frank Reich and rookie QB Bryce Young into the playoffs in their first year together.
“Our goal is to win the NFC South,” Fitterer said. “And I think even with all the new faces, the new staff and all the changes that are taking place, that’s our goal. And I think if we play to our ability, that’s definitely within reach.”
Winning the NFC South would also give the Panthers at least one home playoff game, no matter their overall record.
Reich later said of Fitterer’s comments: “That’s every team’s goal and yes, certainly our goal…. You’ve just got to put all your focus and attention on this next game. That’s the best approach in order to reach those kinds of goals.”
While the NFC South is considered one of the NFL’s weakest divisions, most oddsmakers believe the Panthers will finish third — behind favorite New Orleans and Atlanta but ahead of Tampa Bay.
The Panthers haven’t made the playoffs since the 2017 season, haven’t won the NFC South since the Super Bowl season of 2015, and have gone 29-53 over the past five years.
When asked if Carolina’s overall roster was better than the one that went 7-10 in 2022, Fitterer said that he and assistant general manager Dan Morgan had been asking themselves that very question.
“I sat down with Dan this morning and went position by position (grading this year’s likely starters versus last year’s),” Fitterer said. “For the most part, we had mostly positive, a couple equals; and there was one negative. But overall, I just thought: ‘You know what, we’re making progress.’”
Fitterer’s comments came before the last practice of the week for the Panthers, who are off Friday through Sunday. Pro Bowl defender Brian Burns missed part of Thursday’s activities due to what Reich called “a personal matter.”
Fitterer also said:
▪ The roster purge of several Matt Rhule-era draft picks from the 53-man roster over the past week — including quarterback Matt Corral, who later Thursday was claimed by New England — was something that he and numerous other Panthers personnel people also “own.”
“They are our draft picks, you know, we’re all in this together,” Fitterer said. “And that was part of the thing. We’re not going to focus on who was drafted or how they got here. It’s all about who can help us right now. But… it’s unfair to Matt to say that. We all own that.”
▪ The team may add one more veteran offensive lineman and one more defensive lineman.
▪ The Panthers are excited about former Kansas City Chief Ihmir Smith-Marsette, who they traded for and who will likely make an impact as a return man first.
“The more you watch him,” Fitterer said, “the more you say: ‘Wow, this guy is impressive as a receiver… He had a really good preseason as a receiver (for the Chiefs). And he’s got a ton of energy. Just a ball of fire when he came in. So he’s been fun.”
This story was originally published August 31, 2023 at 2:46 PM.
