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Panthers Make 2 Big Firings to Begin 2nd Week of Offseason

The Carolina Panthers have made two surprise firing from their staff.

By Jason Schandl

Nov 24, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper before the game at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images
Nov 24, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper before the game at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images / Bob Donnan-Imagn Images
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One of the most high-profile messes of the Carolina Panthers' 2024 season was the handling of injured rookie Jonathon Brooks. His return from the torn ACL that sidelined him to start the season came later than expected and was also a strangely drawn-out process. He was fully cleared but didn't actually see game action for a couple of weeks.

And then he promptly tore the same ACL, creating massive long-term concerns around his health.

Whether the Panthers' two major firings on Monday were related to Brooks or not remains to be seen, but it didn't take long for fans to make the connection.

Panthers Make Two Firings From Training Staff

The Panthers opened the 2025 offseason by firing their head athletic trainer in Kevin King, and a director of health/performance/nutrition in Andrew Althoff. These firings were particularly surprising when you consider the tenure each has had with the team.

King worked his way up from his original job as the assistant trainer in 2013, and Althoff has been in Carolina since arriving with Matt Rhule in 2020.

Firing a long-time trainer like King isn't a move teams would make lightly. And consider that, according to SiS, the Panthers were roughly in the middle of the pack in terms of impact from injuries in 2024. According to FTN's numbers, they were the No. 3 most impacted in 2023, although they were one of the 10 least-impacted teams in 2022. So it's not like there has been some longstanding issue brewing.

Maybe more telling is that the players don't seem to have any issues with the staff. According to the 2024 NFLPA report cards, the Panthers ranked No. 6 in "nutritionist/dietician" grade, 4th in "strength coaches" and 3rd in "training staff."

Firings like these never get much press, so it's unlikely we ever get the true story about why King and Althoff are being let go. However, cutting ties with two long-tenured staff members in an area where the team has earned a strong reputation will raise some eyebrows.

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