Despite a particularly tumultuous season, the Carolina Panthers finished just one game short of an improbable NFC South crown in 2022. But now, that crown seems a lot more probable here in 2023.
General manager Scott Fitterer spoke with reporters on Thursday. And in his first question-and-answer session since assembling a 53-man roster, he seemed to be pretty confident about the work he’s done since last season.
Buy Panthers Tickets“We had mostly positive, a couple equals; there was one negative,” Fitterer said of the team’s upgrades, per Darin Gantt of Panthers.com. “But overall, I just thought like, ‘You know what? We’re making progress.’ It’s where we want to be. Every year, I say our goal is to win the NFC South. And I think, even with all the new faces, the new staff, and all the changes that are taking place, that’s our goal. And I think if we play (to) our ability, that’s definitely within reach.”
That goal was within reach back in January, when Carolina went into Raymond James Stadium with a chance to move atop the division in Week 17. But after coughing up an 11-point lead with 14 minutes left in their crucial matchup with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, they lost the game and their chance at the playoffs.
A few months later, it’s those new faces Fitterer referred to that may get the franchise over the hump. Between head coach Frank Reich and rookie quarterback Bryce Young, who have both invigorated the organization with some hope, the Panthers could be angling for their first division title since 2015.
