Panthers will induct four into Hall of Honor, led by receiver Steve Smith Sr.
Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper continues to try to move the franchise forward after buying the team from disgraced founder Jerry Richardson a year ago.
On Monday, the team announced that it will add four players to its Hall of Honor this season — until now, there was only one player inducted: linebacker Sam Mills.
The new quartet are all from offense: receiver Steve Smith Sr., quarterback Jake Delhomme, tackle Jordan Gross, and tight end Wesley Walls.
‘It’s something that was so overdue’
The players will be honored and inducted at a game sometime this season, though the date hasn’t yet been announced.
Tepper felt adding more players to the Hall of Honor — the franchise’s original general manager and president, Mike McCormack, as well as PSL owners, are also inducted — needed to be done.
“It’s something that was so overdue,” Tepper said, via the team’s website. “I mean, to have one player in the Hall of Honor after 25 years? It was time. It was past due time. One year in, when I got to know a little more about the team, a little more about the history, I think it was the right time.”
Tepper delivered the news to each of the four men via a FaceTime call earlier this spring. He was surprised how emotional they got, with some choking up.
“Anybody whose heart is not warmed a little by that, they’ve got a hard heart. Listen, all four of these guys are great guys. I’ve gotten to know them a little bit. I couldn’t be prouder to have them in the Hall of Honor,” Tepper said.
The players have since been flown to Charlotte to get measured for bronze busts and Panther blue jackets. They’ll also have their names in the upper bowl of Bank of America Stadium.
Tepper is in talks with South Carolina to move the team’s practice facility and headquarters to Rock Hill, roughly 30 miles south of Charlotte. Tepper’s plan is for a brick-and-mortar Hall of Honor at a new facility.
‘It’s good to be back’
The 74th overall pick in 2001, Smith spent the first 13 years of his career with Carolina and is the franchise’s all-time leader in catches, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns.
But he had an acrimonious split with the team in 2013, when then-GM Dave Gettleman cut him, ostensibly siding with quarterback Cam Newton. Newton, the No. 1 pick in 2011, and Smith bumped heads; Smith didn’t have a lot of patience for the young, developing quarterback.
Smith quickly signed with the Baltimore Ravens, and made sure to make a point against his former team when they met in Week 4, grabbing seven passes for 139 yards and two touchdowns.
He played with the Ravens for three seasons before retiring in 2016, but he’s always been beloved by Carolina fans.
Smith is one of the players that got emotional when Tepper called with the news.
“It’s good to be back,” Smith said.
“People think with the way I played that I am an emotional person, but that part of me I try not to display a lot. But this hit me in the heart. It hit me between the eyes a little bit. It was something I really wasn’t anticipating.”
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