Written by David Newton at ESPN.com
The Carolina Panthers have fired general manager Dave Gettleman effective immediately, the team announced Monday.
The move comes nine days before the Panthers are scheduled to report to training camp at Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina.
The team offered no immediate reason for Gettleman’s dismissal.
Gettleman parted ways with several of Carolina’s all-time best players in wide receiver Steve Smith Sr., running back DeAngelo Williams and cornerback Josh Norman.
Williams, Smith and Norman all responded to Gettleman’s dismissal on Twitter.
I want to publicly say @Panthers is off my list of teams I won’t play for due to the firing of that snake Dave gettleman! ✊
— DeAngelo Williams (@DeAngeloRB) July 17, 2017
Its Okay! Dave I know how you feel….. #agent89 #stevesmithsr pic.twitter.com/czlwuG92Ck
— Steve Smith Sr (@89SteveSmith) July 17, 2017
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— *Joshua R. Norman (@J_No24) July 17, 2017
Smith is the Panthers’ all-time leading wide receiver (12,197 yards), and Norman was released during the 2016 offseason after he made the Pro Bowl in 2016.
Williams, currently a free agent, recently told ESPN’s Adam Schefter that there were four teams he would not consider playing for: the Dallas Cowboys, Jacksonville Jaguars, Cleveland Browns and Panthers. Carolina apparently is now an option again in Williams’ mind with Gettleman’s firing.
Retired Pro Bowl linebacker Jon Beason, who was drafted by the Panthers in the first round in 2007 and played for the team until he was traded a few games into the 2013 season, also spoke out after Gettleman’s firing.
He told WFNZ-AM The Fan in Charlotte that Gettleman had accused him of faking an Achilles injury that cost him most of the 2011 season.
Beason, now a CBS Sports NFL analyst, also said on the network that he wasn’t pleased with how Gettleman handled his trade.
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