Nice fluff piece from Peter Schrager at FoxSports

[hepcat]

If you talk to folks who work in Silicon Valley, they’ll often name CEOs of lesser-known companies than Apple or Google when asked whose corporate cultures or resumes they most admire.

Speak to a musician, and it’s the Dave Davies and the Dave Lombardos of the world, not the guitarists and drummers you see feted at the Kennedy Center, that they worship. The ultimate compliment in the comedy world is being dubbed a “comedian’s comedian.” Bill Burr and Marc Maron aren’t starring in a romantic comedy alongside the girl from “Glee” anytime soon.  Which leads me to my appreciation of the Carolina Panthers.

I consider myself a bit of an NFL salary cap wonk and a front office purveyor.  For those who love the art of building a roster, you can do a lot worse than checking out what the Carolina Panthers have going on down in Charlotte.  As it should be, the Panthers' star players make the most money on the team. It's Cam Newton, it's Luke Kuechly, it's Thomas Davis, and it's Charles Johnson, Ryan Kalil and Greg Olsen making the big bucks. Those are great guys on the field and tremendous men in the community and locker room. You have your core there.

But it's the gems in the meat of the 53-man roster that make the Panthers a special team. Josh Norman is the best cornerback you've never heard of and he makes $1.5 million. Kawaan Short is a no-nonsense defensive tackle whom you won't hear much about, but is stuffing the run for one of the league's best rush defenses. I can go on and on about guys like Tre Boston and Bene Benwikere, and A.J. Klein and Colin Jones -- but I can sense you tuning out, already. Just know that these aren't guys teams were necessarily clamoring for, but all played big roles last season down the stretch and have picked up right where they left off. Not to mention the addition this week of Jared Allen, which may or may not provide much boost, via a trade with the Bears. 

In 2014, the Panthers let Steve Smith go to the Ravens and everyone just assumed they'd be dazed and confused at receiver. They resisted a splashy signing or trade (DeSean Jackson or Percy Harvin) and went with what they had in-house. Kelvin Benjamin stepped up and the offense found a way. When Benjamin went down this summer, the media did the same thing, wondering, "Who's Cam going to throw to? How can they compete?!"
General manager Dave Gettleman, an Ernie Acorsi protégé, and assistant general manager Brandon Beane didn't press the panic button. They spent money to extend Cam Newton and Luke Kuechly instead, and the offense has functioned without a true No. 1, 2 or 3 three wide receiver.

The Panthers are 3-0. They're not particularly pretty to watch. They might not be getting the Cris Collinsworth, Al Michaels, and Faith Hill marquee treatment week to week, but they're a damn well-built machine. And they're built to last.

They're never the media "winners" when free agency opens and they don't have the best record when it comes to draft grades. But the Panthers have won eight of the last nine times they've taken the field. They've done it the right way. That works for me.

http://www.foxsports.com/nfl/story/nfl-week-4-picks-carolina-panthers-tampa-bay-buccaneers-new-england-patriots-100115

Panthers getting some positive press after a 3-0 start.  Everyone loves a winner, whether it's ugly or pretty. 

[Panthro]

squuueeeeeeeeee

[caatfan]

Already posted- http://www.carolinahuddle.com/boards/topic/119020-praise-from-fox-sports/