What makes a Carolina player “a great”? Is it who does the most for the community or signs the most autographs? Is it the guys who draw the most media attention to our small market? Is it the guy who makes the biggest plays in the biggest moments? Or, could it simply be leadership and professionalism that genuinely makes a Panther great?

Carolina drafted Shaq Thompson 25th overall in the 2015 NFL Draft. He was the guy Dave Gettleman targeted and coveted most to bring to Carolina, despite having Luke Keuchly and Thomas Davis, two of the league’s best linebackers, on the roster. Every Panthers fan knows 2015 has become the “standard" for Panther greatness and is now the benchmark fans want Carolina to return to. Shaq earned the starting position as a rookie and took in all of the knowledge, experience, and leadership of linebacker greats Thomas Davis and Luke Kuechly. In his first year in the league, he got to experience the most remarkable season in Panther history. What does that experience do to a player? What kind of fire must be lit to return to "the dance"? It’s a thought that brings Dan Marino to mind. A legend and one of the greatest to ever do it at his position, he never was able to make it back to the Super Bowl. To come so close to the ultimate prize only to watch your team degrade has to be disheartening. 

From the Rivera era through Rhule’s failed time in Carolina, Shaq was grinding, laying it all on the line on Sundays. Training hard, eating right, and muscling through physical and mental adversity, Shaq became a team leader and has arguably played his best football over the last two seasons. 

 You should understand that, yes, these men are athletically gifted, but the NFL standard doesn’t come easy. It doesn’t come with any days off. They must push their bodies to their genetic limits. Shaq has played seven long seasons in Carolina, all throughout, fighting to keep his body in prime physical condition, only to see everything he enjoyed his first-year rot and degrade to the embarrassment that became Matt Rhule’s final games coaching in Carolina in 2022. Despite how bad Rhule Era was, Shaq stayed 100% committed to the cause. After having his knee scoped in 2022, he went on to set his record for tackles in a season with 129. It was clear Shaq was the leader of Carolina’s defense on the field, but also that leadership extended into the locker room, where he became a mentor to several younger players and the player representative to the fans who weren’t pleased with the team’s performance under Matt Rhule. After Carolina fired Matt Rhule and turned to Interim Head Coach Steve Wilks, the 2015 mentality of Keep Pounding returned. Shaq found again what was missing since his rookie year—excellence rooted in leadership and professionalism.

Although Carolina didn’t retain Wilks as head coach, the team appears headed in a new direction under Frank Reich’s leadership and the exceptional coaching staff he has assembled. Shaq's future with the Panthers was in question for the first time in his career. It wasn’t a matter of his play or character; instead, it was about the money. Shaq had a cap hit of over $24 million this year, and many fans called for us to cut him so that Carolina could save $8 million against the cap this year. 

I believe many fans just underestimated how good and important his play was last season. If you know C3, you understand how every angle of every take will be explored. Let’s just say C3 Nation is thorough! Shaq addressed the growing call by fans for him to be released on February 6th on Twitter. He interacted heavily with fans, even asking: "Would you take a pay cut at your job?" Most of us definitely would not. I've quit jobs before just because I didn't get a raise. So it's not hard to understand where Shaq was coming from on this. Like they say, it's not personal; it's just business. Shaq did end up taking a paycut to remain in Carolina, however. Self-sacrifice alone doesn’t make a player a Panther great likely, but it is a leadership trait that lends towards greatness! 

With the signing of Evero, the tables turned for Shaq to stay a Panther. Shaq tweeted about how Evero would change the culture of the defense and how he longed to make the Panthers a top defense again. For Shaq, his entire career has led up to this moment — the biggest of paydays and his burning desire to bring Carolina greatness again. I know exactly what most of us would've chosen, and nobody would've blamed the man for taking care of his family. Fortunately, for Panthers fans, Shaquille Thompson isn't like most of us. Shaq extended his contract and accepted about a quarter of what he could have made. Not because he's washed, or he couldn't get a job on another NFL team, but because he values seeing the Panthers back to that 2015 level over his own financial gain. 

That's what inspired me to write this, I wouldn't have done it, and all the "fake fans," in Shaq's words, wouldn't have taken the pay cut either. Remember, when you're cheering for our rookie quarterback, making touchdowns to our newly acquired targets, those receivers got paid this season out of Shaq's contract. He was drafted into success, and now he has repaid this new era beginning in Carolina. I don't feel his sacrifice will be in vain, and Shaq will get what he truly desires, sterling success for the Carolina Panthers.

By Deese aka @Deezeillskillz

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