Panthers news: Team fires general counsel Richard Thigpen as Tepper era begins

CHARLOTTE, NC - SEPTEMBER 01: A detail of the Carolina Panthers helmet during their preseason game at Bank of America Stadium on September 1, 2011 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
CHARLOTTE, NC - SEPTEMBER 01: A detail of the Carolina Panthers helmet during their preseason game at Bank of America Stadium on September 1, 2011 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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The remodel of the Carolina Panthers continues…

The Carolina Panthers are continuing an organizational overhaul as another personnel move was made on Wednesday. General counsel  Richard Thigpen was fired by David Tepper a move that really comes as no surprise.

Per a report from Darin Gantt of ProFootballTalk.com, Thigpen was the team lawyer and he supervised over the signings of non-disclosure agreements with employees.

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Thigpen had been a member of the Carolina Panthers organization since 1997.

In keeping with changing the culture of the organization, Tepper said on Tuesday during his press conference that non-disclosure agreements would be a thing of the past. This falls in line with the recommendations by the league as a result of the Richardson investigation.

Tepper was not kidding when he said this is a new era of Carolina Panthers football. It seems to me, especially with this move, that we wants to get rid of anything connected with Jerry Richardson that is still connected with the franchise. The one thing that cannot be removed is Richardson’s statue, which will still remain outside of Bank of America Stadium.

Even still, it seems as though Tepper wants to truly turn the page on the previous regime and focus on the future. With the resignation of COO Tina Becker earlier this week, it seems as if employees within the organization who do not want to be on board are slowly jumping ship. Tepper wants to make this his organization and that is not a bad thing.

Next: Could a team president be organization’s next move?

It will be interesting to see who stays and who goes within the coming weeks. Something tells me that there will be more departures in the coming weeks as the organization gets a remodel of sorts.