Who's to blame for Carolina Panthers missing the NFL playoffs this year?

The Carolina Panthers are again one of the worst teams in the NFL.

Nov 7, 2021; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper with general manager Scott Fitterer before the game at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images / Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

The Carolina Panthers were officially eliminated from the playoffs with a stunning home loss to the Dallas Cowboys last week. That was the final nail in the coffin, though they were virtually out of it after starting 1-7. The team was the worst in the NFL with two wins last year, and they're only at three this year.

There has been some improvement in Dave Canales and Dan Morgan's first year together as coach and GM, but this is still a 3-11 team without a clear win on the remaining schedule. One win of improvement doesn't do much for team-building. Who's to blame for this mess?

Why an ex-GM is responsible for the Panthers 2024 struggles

Bleacher Report offered up the take that current GM Dan Morgan is responsible for this disaster. They did acknowledge that the future seems bright, but that Morgan did a poor job of bringing in talent for this season. They cited the "marquee" moves of Robert Hunt, Damien Lewis, Diontae Johnson, and Jadeveon Clowney as not being big enough to get the Panthers out of the hole.

For one thing, two of those moves were excellent. Hunt and Lewis have combined to vastly improve the offensive line play in 2024 compared to 2023. Clowney has also been serviceable, so that wasn't a bad move. Johnson didn't pan out, but they didn't pay much for him and he's been virtually unplayable on his new team.

The real culprit for why the Panthers' roster is so talent-poor is former GM Scott Fitterer. His run as GM was terrible, and it set the Panthers up for failure well into the future. Just take a look at the 2023 draft class, his final one with the team: Bryce Young, Jonathan Mingo, DJ Johnson, Chandler Zavala, and Jammie Robinson.

Only Young, Zavala, and Johnson remain after just one year, and Young is the only impact player. And it's worth mentioning that there is arguably not a QB in the NFL that's worth what the Panthers traded away just to get Young.

They should have just stood pat at ninth overall and drafted a QB from the much stronger 2024 class, and that falls on Fitterer. The former GM decided to mortgage the future for a player who has not had the talent needed to succeed, so it's no wonder the roster is in such bad shape.

Fitterer's previous drafts aren't much better, as Ikem Ekwonu, Cade Mays, Jaycee Horn, and Chuba Hubbard are the only picks he made that are still on the team. Fitterer was a disaster, and his pairing with the meddlesome David Tepper ruined this team for years to come. It's a wonder there's any hope for the future.