Carolina Panthers indoor practice facility a priority

Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper confirms indoor practice bubble over field outside stadium.

The Carolina Panthers need an indoor practice facility. Two of their divisional opponents play home games inside a dome – New Orleans and Atlanta, in addition to being able to prepare without worrying about the lack of focus due to the weather elements or impact it could have on the players.

Teams around the NFL have been adding indoor practice facilities for years, but the Panthers remain outside on a daily basis. Carolina does have access to both turf and natural grass practice surfaces but none are covered.

David Tepper has plans to change that beginning next season. According to Jourdan Rodrigue of The Charlotte Observer, the team will construct an air-supported, indoor practice bubble over the turf field outside Bank of America Stadium. The solution is a temporary fix to an ongoing problem as Tepper continues to look for an area near Charlotte to house the team facilities – including practices, in the future.

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Last year the Carolinas experienced an array of different weather patterns from Mother Nature during an unusual fall and start to winter for the Charlotte area. Two different hurricane systems, Florence and Michael, brought above average rainfall, an early snow derailed practice plans and more rain before Christmas forced the team to practice in an open event space housed inside the Charlotte Convention Center.

The latter was probably a final straw for Tepper, who made the comment, “But you better have a football to play with, and you better not be practicing in ballrooms to start with” during his post season analysis with reporters about the future of the franchise.

The move is a positive one for Carolina and although it won’t be the long-term solution, a bubble gives the team something they haven’t had in a quarter-century of existence. A legitimate indoor practice area to keep players out of the elements and focused on football instead of rain, sleet, ice, snow or cold temperatures which could easily serve as distractions.

A quality improvement from the new owner as his first full offseason begins.