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The Carolina Panthers announced yesterday, that they have relieved general manager Dave Gettleman of his duties, effective immediately. This is a highly surprising move considering how much respect Gettleman has earned for building the Panthers into one of the more respected franchises in the league.
What is especially interesting, is the timing; With the season just around the corner, there had to have been something going on behind the scenes. This isn’t especially hard to believe considering the fact that Gettleman is no stranger to controversial decisions.
We as Ravens fans know this all too well, as the most surprising move he ever made brought Steve Smith Sr. to Charm City.
Smitty has been vocal about his displeasure with the way Gettleman handled his release following the 2013 season. Now that Smith has retired, he has been much more active on social media, and utilized this platform to take a shot at Gettleman when the announcement came down:
Its Okay! Dave I know how you feel..... #agent89 #stevesmithsr pic.twitter.com/czlwuG92Ck
— Steve Smith Sr (@89SteveSmith) July 17, 2017
This is certainly a fun response from Agent 89, who would be at the top of the list of people who would still hold a grudge over something like this. Another player who went through a very similar situation with Gettleman and the Panthers is Redskins cornerback Josh Norman, who also got in on the Twitter fun.
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— *Joshua R. Norman (@J_No24) July 17, 2017
While there is no telling what actually led to this mid-summer firing, it will surely be interesting to follow these types of reactions as they continue to come out (especially when they come from some of the sport’s best trash talkers).