How much longer can David Tepper avoid facing the music?

How much longer can Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper avoid facing the music with the regional and national media?

We are now almost a fortnight removed from the Carolina Panthers‘ final game of the 2021 season. A heavy loss at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers resulted in yet another five-win campaign for the organization and a fourth-straight losing year since David Tepper bought the franchise from Jerry Richardson, which is not what the billionaire had in mind when he shelled out more than $2 billion in 2018.

Tepper is reportedly embarrassed by the current state of the Panthers according to a scathing article from Joe Person of The Athletic. However, this wasn’t enough for the owner to remove head coach Matt Rhule despite increasing pressure to do so from fans, analysts, and even some former players who once graced the field at Bank of America Stadium.

There are also growing calls for Tepper to face the media and explain his decision to keep Rhule around. For a man that couldn’t get enough of the spotlight before this season, his radio silence throughout the campaign speaks volumes about how things have transpired in recent months.

He doesn’t have to communicate, obviously. Even though it would be nice for fans to get some sort of clarification from the man calling the shots.

However, it might not be much longer before Tepper has to face the music.

David Tepper might face the music ahead of Charlotte FC’s inaugural season

Charlotte FC‘s inaugural campaign is set to get underway on February 26. Tepper will no doubt want to bask in the fruits of his labor and this will no doubt come along with questions surrounding Rhule and the current state of the Panthers.

He may not like it. Especially since this will take away from all the hard work that’s been undertaken to get a soccer team to Charlotte.

But the simple fact of the matter is far more people care about the NFL – even in the offseason – and Tepper has to be ready for an onslaught of questions whenever he does become available to the media.

Tepper’s big talk at the NFL owners’ meeting, once they approved his purchase of the Panthers, is now a distant memory. All his claims of caring about winning and nothing else have amounted to no real progress since he assumed control, which has some wondering whether the hedge fund manager is cut out to be a successful operator of a professional franchise.

Communication is absolutely key, here. Dripping information through the likes of Adam Schefter and Jay Glazer is doing nothing to assist the situation and the very least fans that pay their hard-earned money to watch the team deserve is an explanation and a clear plan about moving the Panthers forward.

Tepper has every right to run the franchise how he wants. And he does deserve credit for maintaining progress on what is sure to be an exceptional new headquarters in Rock Hill despite COVID-19 threatening to derail these plans considerably.

This is all secondary to fans.

They want a winner on the field – something Tepper promised them. And make absolutely no mistake about it, the natives are getting extremely restless.