Carolina Panthers: Firing Marty Hurney was the right call

Firing Marty Hurney was the right call by the Carolina Panthers.

Marty Hurney’s second spell as general manager of the Carolina Panthers is officially over. Owner David Tepper announced he had parted ways with the long-time front office presence on Monday after their narrow loss at the Green Bay Packers, which was another game that came down to the wire.

There has been plenty of good and bad thrown in by Hurney, who has struck gold with the majority of his first-round NFL Draft picks during his time with the Carolina Panthers. However, the way he’s handled certain situations – particularly this offseason – has left a lot to be desired and it looks like the 2019 draft class was a complete bust outside of stud defensive end Brian Burns.

Tepper obviously thinks so too.

In a statement released on the Panthers website, Tepper indicated that it was time for a restart and some new ideas brought to Carolina, which is in keeping with the direction he’s gone in since purchasing the Panthers from Jerry Richardson.

"“I think sometimes you just need a restart, a refresh. We did it last year on the coaching side. Maybe you could say it should have been done before on the GM side. Maybe it should have been. I’m sure people may say that, or otherwise, on both sides. I think it’s just time, on both sides, to do that. It just seems like the right time to move forward.”"

The Carolina Panthers made the right decision.

This wasn’t just the right decision, it seems like the only one Tepper could make.

The Panthers are going through a period of transition that is going to make every decision critical this offseason. They have some exciting young pieces to build around, a head coach in Matt Rhule who has shown he was the right hire and another high-end NFL Draft selection in 2021.

In truth, the writing was on the wall for Hurney despite another strong draft earlier this year. Tepper has set about completely revolutionizing the organization in pursuit of greatness and the departed GM represents the last piece of the old guard that is now looking for alternative employment.

Tepper has some ambitious plans for progression off the field. Their new base at Rock Hill is going to be a sight to behold once completed and he will want a team challenging for honors by the time they move into their new headquarters.

It did seem strange that Hurney was brought back for a second go-around in the first place. But he leaves behind some nice players such as Jeremy Chinn, Burns, Derrick Brown, and D.J. Moore for whoever steps into the breach.

This is all part of the cutthroat business of the NFL.

Nobody will know that more than Hurney himself.

Tepper didn’t accumulate his extraordinary wealth by sitting on his hands and going in a completely different direction in this instance is further proof that big changes might be coming to the Panthers this offseason.

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