Scott Fitterer gave his first interview as Carolina’s new GM with Panthers.com. Here are four things we learned:
Pandemic 15
Fitterer first met virtually with owner David Tepper and impressed him so much that he was on a flight to Charlotte the next morning to meet in person with the Panthers’ brass. Scott quickly packed, but once he arrived in Charlotte and put on his suit it was too tight (like many of us he has put on pandemic weight). So instead of going the business casual route of wearing slacks and a sports coat, Fitterer went to Nordstroms and bought a suit appropriate for an interview of this caliber. Guess it helped…he got the job.
Challenger
Fitterer acknowledged that it’s his job to help Matt Rhule build the type of team he wants with the type of players who will fit his vision, but he added that he won’t be afraid to challenge the Panthers’ head coach when needed.
“Coach Rhule has been here and he knows what he wants this team to look like. I’m here to find the players that he wants. It’s also my job to challenge him on players we’re bringing in, have thought provoking conversations, put our egos aside and focus on what’s best for the team.”
Draft Philosophy
One of the first things Fitterer mentioned when asked about his overall philosophy was being aggressive. He didn’t go into detail about how aggressive he will be in his first season, but he did talk about what he looks for when drafting players.
“After a certain skill-set level you have to be an internally driven, competitive, smart, tough, reliable player. That’s what we’re looking for. That’s the filter we’re going to work through.”
No Quick Fixes:
If you’re looking for the Panthers to take a swing and possibly make big a move that will make them instant favorites (like going after Deshaun Watson), you may be disappointed. Fitterer says the team is looking to compete, but there won’t be any quick fixes.
“We’re going to get after it. The wins are going to come. It’s not going to be a quick fix, that we’re looking for a quick spike. We’re going to do this the right way, so we can sustain it, and build it over a period of time, and have a championship-caliber team.
“We’re looking to compete right now, and we’re going to build from there.”
You can check out the full interview below.
