The Carolina Panthers are almost finished with their terrible 2023-24 campaign. However, in the second-to-last game of the regular season, team owner David Tepper created an extremely bad look for himself and his team.
Video taken by a fan captured someone who appeared to be Tepper tossing the contents of his cup from a suite onto a group of fans at Jacksonville’s EverBank Stadium. He then threw his cup down and stormed out of the room.
Panthers owner David Tepper appeared to throw a drink in the crowd in Jacksonville today pic.twitter.com/X2iQkb3Z4b
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) December 31, 2023
The fan who was apparently doused by Tepper’s beverage then climbed up to look into the suite’s opening and see where the liquid came from. What happened after that wasn’t clear as the video ended, but the situation presumably didn’t escalate from there.
Tepper’s Panthers lost to the Jacksonville Jaguars, 26–0, dropping Carolina’s record to an NFL-worst 2–14. That would normally set the Panthers up for the No. 1 overall pick in next April’s NFL draft. But Carolina traded that pick to the Chicago Bears to move up to the top selection in 2023 and select quarterback Bryce Young.
Not only will the Panthers not be in a position to draft a top college player as consolation for a poor season, but the team will also be looking for its third head coach in three seasons after Tepper dismissed Frank Reich in November.
Meanwhile, the NFL may have something to say about Tepper’s behavior during the week to come. Tossing drinks at fans can’t be what the league expects from someone in a position of leadership.
