The NFL’s worst team, the Carolina Panthers, recently announced their massive $800 million plans to renovate the Bank of America Stadium on Monday. But their star receiver Adam Thielen hopes this will just be the start of making upgrades to the organization as a whole.
Thielen, in a recent interview, was candid about how he and his fellow players feel about the Panthers facilities. While the Panthers are at the bottom of the NFL as a team, Thielen feels the organization is at the bottom of the league in other ways too.
Adam Thielen Says His Team Has Worst Facilities In The NFL
Thielen answered questions about the team’s plans of renovating the stadium, and he saw a great opportunity to talk about the different issues he has with the team’s facilities:
“I think they’re behind a little bit as far as facilities,” Thielen told the Charlotte Observer‘s Alex Zietlow. “We probably have the worst facilities in the NFL right now, and I don’t think there is anybody who would argue that. But at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter. You gotta go play football, and you gotta go win games.”
Thielen is clearly not the only member of the Panthers who feels exactly the same way. Based on the NFL Players Association report card, many players ranked the Panthers facility as one of the worst in the league.
It is interesting to note that Panthers owner David Tepper is the wealthiest owner in the entire league, and should have more than enough to upgrade the facilities for his star athletes. The teams locker room received a C+ rank which made it the 18th among 32 teams, and interestingly enough, the cold and hot tubs were the biggest grope from players claiming that they are way too small.
The Panthers are the worst team in the NFL and improving the facilities can go a long way in changing the culture of the players and organization.
Thielen has also only known some of the best facilities in his time with the Minnesota Vikings. While the Panthers were not ranked as low as the Washington Commanders who received an F- for their facilities, the Panthers do rank close to the bottom.
Thielen may have much higher standards because of time in Minnesota where he spent nine seasons. His former team got the second highest grade overall with an A locker room and weight room, and an A- for their training room.
The Panthers are currently without an indoor facility all together as the organization will have some upgrades, and Thielen says the team has been “making do” with the situation. While Thielen did get out his complaints, he also remains optimistic that the team will improve the conditions moving forward.
“It’s exciting to hear that they’re going to invest in the players and the organization, the staff,” he said. “And I think everyone’s just excited to see that follow through and to get those resources to be at our best.”
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