4 underrated moves from the Carolina Panthers 2024 offseason
By Dean Jones
Carolina Panthers hired Brandt Tilis
Dan Morgan was promoted to the general manager position despite his previous association with Scott Fitterer. Many questioned whether this was the right call. But his reputation coupled with a deep love for the franchise convinced team owner David Tepper that this was the guy to finally get the Carolina Panthers out of the doldrums.
Morgan specializes in personnel evaluation and roster construction. As such, the Panthers made his life easier by acquiring Brandt Tilis from the Kansas City Chiefs.
Tilis specializes in salary-cap management. This is an area where the Panthers have faltered more often than not under previous regimes. Bad contracts, woeful trades, and no future planning played leading roles in their demise. The new executive vice president of football operations is looking to change that as a matter of urgency.
Looking at the contract structures and level of professionalism in the front office, Tilis has already left his mark in a relatively short space of time. Carolina's new power couple opted to take financial hits now for long-term prosperity. They also changed the narrative surrounding established stars by extending defensive lineman Derrick Brown before things got more complicated.
This is the right way of going about things. The Panthers are starting from the bottom up and needed a complete change in direction. Tilis was a big reason why the Chiefs could keep most of their top stars happy. Now, he'll be tasked with ensuring the same occurs in Carolina.
Just how long that is going to take is the big question nobody knows the answer to right now. It's unlikely that Tilis joined the Panthers without a lofty financial commitment from Tepper. While the billionaire will expect a return on his investment as all hedge fund managers do, he also needs to adopt a sense of patience as these ambitious plans take shape.
If Tilis builds on his early momentum, this could be one of the most underrated and important hires the Panthers have made in some time.
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